Phil Harris talks to Kingdom MMA ahead of UFC Dublin

by Chris Houten @mrhouts

On Saturday night Phil Harris steps foot back in the octagon. For some, his return may be surprising since it was only a couple of months since he was released. However in MMA the scene changes very quickly and Harris has benefited from this and will return to square off once again against Neil Seery, who Harris previously beat. This time the advantage of the third man is firmly with Seery as the fight is in his own backyard at the O2 Arena, Dublin. Before that fight Harris took time out of his schedule to talk to Kingdom MMA and discuss his last fight, his return to the UFC and of course a look ahead to the fight this weekend.

Chris: So you're back in the UFC fighting Neil Seery, how has your camp gone for this fight?
Harris: It's gone very well, it's been a long camp and I'm more than ready.

Chris: Other than the usual Gym 01 guys who are there week in week out, Brum, Pennington, Caswell etc. who have you worked with for this camp? Has Lee or Grant been down over the last few months?
Harris: Brad Pickett has been down at the start of my camp, also Mark Handley has been down, and Sam Creasy has been down for sparring. I've also been up to Poole martial arts and they've lots of good Thai fighters.

Chris: You were pulled from a fight in the Middle East for Cage Warriors just before you resigned with the UFC, have you essentially been in camp since April?
Harris: I'm always training so I'm never actually out of a camp! After this fight I'll be slowing down my training for a few weeks.

Chris: You originally lost your last fight to Gaudinot, however the bout has now been overturned due to Gaudinot failing a drug test. Was the fact Gaudinot failed a drug test instrumental in you being brought back into the UFC?
Harris: No the UFC asked my manager if he had any UK/ Euro guys at flyweight and he said that I deserve another shot and they listened to him and gave me another shot. A plus side of having an awesome manager (Graham Boylan)

Chris: You were caught early in the Gaudinot fight and you almost looked out of sorts. Talk us through the fight, how did your preparation and build up to the fight go, and where did you feel you went wrong in the fight?
Harris: I had no excuses for that fight I made a mistake rushed a take down and left my neck open. Louis jumped on it!

Chris: With the failed drug test, the loss to Gaudinot has been changed to a no contest. How are you treating this fight, is it bittersweet to have the loss overturned or are you still treating it as a loss?
Harris: It's still a loss in my eyes.

Chris: When the news broke that Ian McCall was out of UFC London in March you were pretty supportive of the UFC signing Neil Seery, it felt like you both seemed friendly. How would you describe your relationship with Neil and what is it like to fight someone you know, respect and maybe even like?
Harris: I've a lot of respect for Neil he's a top guy, he deserved his shot in the UFC so I supported him and was pleased when he got the call up.
We'll definitely have a drink after the fight.

Chris: How much better do you think Neil Seery has become since the first time you fought?
Harris: He's probably going to be more well rounded now but I'm pretty sure his come forward throwing punches style won't change.

Chris: How do you feel about fighting Seery in his back yard? Are you expecting the most hostile environment you've ever fought in?
Harris: Yeah I'm expecting to be the bad guy but it doesn't bother me in the slightest.

Chris: There are 2 other flyweight battles on the card along side your bout with Seery. You have Pickett vs McCall, and Holohan vs Sampo, how do you see those fights playing out?
Harris: Pickett has a tough fight but will come through the winner, haven't a clue how. Holohan vs sampo will be a great fight holohan will win via submission in round 1, maybe a triangle.

Chris: Finally we are half way through the year now, what can we expect from the Gym 01 guys in the second part of 2014?
Harris: Brett Caswell will finish the year with a massive win along with a few others Scott Pooley has a big fight in the pipe line
Also the next generation of fighters are coming through, watch out for Ollie Davidson and Alan Talis both big talents!

Chris: Would you like to thank anyone ahead of the fight for helping you prepare?
Harris: I'd like to thank Bri Adams, Head gym01 coach. Mok Rahman, my striking coach/pad man. All of my training partners at gym01.

Also my sponsors Smuggling duds, JY nutrition, Sweet sweat and Funky gums.

Also my lovely wife Debbie.
Thanks again for your time Phil and we wish you all the best for the fight on Saturday night.

UFC Fight Night Dublin Fans Schedule

UFC Fight Night Dublin Fans Schedule

by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

The moment has finally arrived for fans across the UK and Ireland - IT'S FIGHT WEEK!

UFC Fight Night Dublin is finally here, and as many of you will know, a trip to a UFC event starts with pre-fight festivities, giving fans the opportunity to meet some of their favourite fighters, hang out at the open work outs, and go nuts at the live weigh-ins.

With so much taking place on fight week, we bring you a guide of where to be, so you don't miss out on any of the action taking place this week. Be sure to check back as we will keep you up-to-date or any new additions as the week goes.

Tuesday - July 15th
Reddit AMA with Forest Griffin - 8PM BST / 9PM CET / 3PM ET / 12PM PT

Wednesday - July 16th
Ultimate Media & Fan Day - UFC Fight Club Ticket Holders Only
The Royal Hospital Kilmainham, Military Road, Kilmainham, Dublin 8
Map

18:30 – 20:30: UFC FIGHT NIGHT DUBLIN Open workouts and face-offs

Participants:
Conor McGregor – UFC featherweight
Diego Brandao – UFC featherweight
Gunnar Nelson – UFC welterweight
Zak Cummings – UFC welterweight
Brad Pickett – UFC flyweight
Ian McCall – UFC flyweight
Norman Parke – UFC lightweight
Naoyuki Kotani – UFC lightweight
Chris Dempsey – UFC light heavyweight
Ilir Latifi – UFC light heavyweight
Neil Seery – UFC flyweight
Phil Harris – UFC flyweight
Cathal Pendred – UFC middleweight
Mike King – UFC middleweight
Tor Troeng – UFC middleweight
Trevor Smith – UFC middleweight
Cody Donovan – UFC light heavyweight
Nikita Krylov – UFC light heavyweight
Patrick Holohan – UFC flyweight
Josh Sampo – UFC flyweight

Thursday - July 17th
EA Sports Fan Signing with Forrest Griffin & Cub Swanson 6PM BST
HMV, 26 Grafton Street, Dublin
Map

Friday - July 18th 
UFC Fighter Signings, and Weigh-ins
O2 Arena, Dublin
Map

2PM BST / 3PM CET - Fighter signing with Forrest Griffin, Luke Barnatt, Cub Swanson, Jimi Manuwa, & Eddie Gordon - UFC Fight Club Only
4PM BST / 5PM CET - UFC Fight Night Dublin: McGregor vs. Brandao Official Weigh In
5PM BST / 6PM CET -  Q&A with guest fighters: Luke Barnatt, Forrest Griffin and Cub Swanson - Ticket Holders Only

UFC Fight Night Pre-party Hosted by Chuck Liddell - 10PM BST / 11 CET
21 Sráid D'Olier, Baile Átha Cliath, Dublin
Map 
 
Saturday - July 19th

UFC Fight Night Dublin: McGregor vs. Brandao Fight Night
O2 Arena, Dublin
Map

16:30: Doors open to the public
17:30: Prelim card begins
20:00: Main Card Begins; UFC Fight Night Dublin: Live on BT Sport and 3e.

Conor McGregor Afterparty - Sin Nightclub - Tickets €15
Sin Bar, 17-19 Sycamore St, Dublin 2
Map 

UFC Sign Paddy Holohan, Meets Josh Sampo in Dublin

UFC Sign Paddy Holohan, Meets Josh Sampo in Dublin

by Chris Houten - @mrhouts

UFC officials have today confirmed Irish prospect Paddy Holohan has signed with the promotion and will meet Josh Sampo at UFC Fight Night 46 in Dublin.

UFC Fight Night 46 takes place July 19th at The O2 in Dublin, and is headline by Conor McGregor vs Diego Brandao. The event will stream live on UFC Fight Pass, and will also be broadcasted on BT Sports in the UK. It is not known yet if Holohan vs Sampo will feature on the preliminary card or the main card.

Fighting out of SBG Ireland alongside top Irish fighters such as UFC Fight Night 46 headliner Conor McGregor and TUF 19 stars, Cathal Pendred and Chris Field, 26-year-old Paddy Holohan is currently riding a 10 fight unbeaten streak, enough to earn the Irishman a contract with the UFC.

Formerly a bantamweight, Paddy Holohan (9-0-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) tried out for season 18 of the Ultimate Fighter but was knocked out of the fight to get into the house by Josh Hill. A veteran of top Irish promotion Cage Contenders, it will be 2 years since Holohan last fought professionally when he steps into the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 46.

A pro since 2009, Sampo (11-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) made his UFC debut at Novembers TUF 18 finale defeating Ryan Benoit by Rear Naked Choke while putting on a fight of the night winning performance. However as Sampo missing weight before the bout, he forfeited his £50,000 bonus cheque to Benoit. Following the victory over Benoit, Sampo then went on to fight former Bellator champion Zak Makovsky, who he lost to by unanimous decision at UFC 170. The lost to Makovsky snapped a five fight win streak for the 29-year-old who has 6 submissions in 11 victories.

With the addition of Holohan vs Sampo, UFC Fight Night 46 card includes:

    Conor McGregor vs. Diego Brandao
    Zak Cummings vs. Gunnar Nelson
    Ian McCall vs. Brad Pickett
    Ilir Latifi vs. Tom Lawlor
    Cody Donovan vs. Nikita Krylov
    Phil Harris vs. Neil Seery
    Trevor Smith vs. Tor Troeng
    Naoyuki Kotani vs. Norman Parke
    Patrick Holohan vs. Josh Sampo

Stay Tuned to KingdomMMA.co.uk for all the latest on UFC Fight Night 46

UFC Dublin adds Parke vs Kotani

Norman Parke meets Naoyuki Kotani at UFC Fight Night 46 in Dublin

by Chris Houten @mrhouts

Northern Ireland's Norman Parke (20-2-1 MMA, 3-0-1 UFC) will meet returning Japanese lightweight Naoyuki Kotani (33-10-7 MMA, 0-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 46 in Dublin.

UFC Fight Night 46 Dublin takes place July 19th at the The O2 Arena. Tickets for the event will go on sale to the general public at 10am on Friday 6th June and can be purchased from www.ticketmaster.ie and www.theo2.ie.

Undefeated in 10 bouts, Norman Parke returns to fight on more familiar shores hoping to bounce back from a disappointing draw to Leonardo Santos at UFC Fight Night 38  in Brazil; a bout that Parke was docked a point without warning from the referee for grabbing Santos' shorts.

A pro since 2006, Parke burst on to the international scene when he won The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes, a version of TUF which pit Australia vs The United Kingdom. Since beating fellow Brit Colin Fletcher in the finals of TUF: smashes, Parke put together impressive decision victories over Kazuki Tokudome and Jon Tuck before the draw to Leonardo Santos.

Currently riding a 4 year, 13 fight wins streak, Japanese lightweight Naoyuki Kotani fights in the UFC for the first time since 2007 where loses to Thiago Tavares and Dennis Siver saw him released from the promotion. A devastating submission artist with 25 of his 30 finishes coming by tap out, the 32 year old Japanese fighter has struggled throughout his career when facing western opposition with previous loses coming to Jorge Masvidal, Rich Clementi, Marcus Aurelio, Yves Edwards, and Roger Huerta.

With the addition of Parke vs Kotani UFC Fight Night 46 now includes:

Conor McGregor vs. Cole Miller
Zak Cummings vs. Gunnar Nelson
Ian McCall vs. Brad Pickett
Ilir Latifi vs. Tom Lawlor
Cody Donovan vs. Nikita Krylov
Phil Harris vs. Neil Seery
Trevor Smith vs. Tor Troeng
Naoyuki Kotani vs. Norman Parke

Stay tuned to KingdomMMA.co.uk for all the latest on UFC Fight Night 46

Bradley Scott previews UFC Berlin

UFC Middleweight Brad Scott Previews UFC Fight Night: Munoz vs Mousasi

by Ben Heather @benheather

Kingdom MMA recently caught up with Brad Scott and he gave us his breakdown of UFC Fight Night: Munoz vs Mousasi. Unfortunately Brad is currently sidelined with a shoulder injury but hopefully we will see him back in action later this year. While he is out of action we took the opportunity to see if his predictions are as good as he is in the octagon.

Munoz vs Mousasi
I'm gonna go with Mousasi, I think he will out strike Munoz and I can't see Munoz getting him down. I genuinely believe that Mousasi is sick! I really really rate him and I've seen him doing some training with Dan Henderson. His greco wrestling is sick, he's super good and his striking is phenomenal. It's just whether he gets the chance to use it.

Carmont vs Dollaway
Both are beasts and CB trains in Arizona near me, but I'm gonna go with Francis Carmont. I think Carmont is gonna play it super safe as always and will win by a boring, boring decision.

Barnatt vs Strickland
Luke will win this by TKO. I predict he will catch him coming in with a straight right going down. It will be early in the fight, trust me!!

Hein vs Dober
I don't know much on either guy so I will pass on this one.

Cedenblad vs Jotko
I'm going to go with Cedenblad. Even though Jotko is 14-0 I wouldn't care if he was 20-0. The level of Polish MMA is normally quite low and so I have to go with a guy who's been fighting in the UFC for a while.

Lee vs Alcantara
Vaughan Lee will win this. He was hard to take down, he has a great takedown defence and is good at BJJ. He famously got all those submissions in two minutes when he went to Vegas to tryout for TUF.

Sobotta vs Pawlak
I think this will be the time that Sobatta finally gets a win in the UFC.

Ogle vs Blanco
I felt so sorry for Ogle in his last fight against Charles Oliveira. I was watching it in America and the whole bar was cheering for Andy Ogle to win. Then he got locked in the triangle. He gets back to winning ways in Berlin

Pesta vs Magomedov
Again, sorry I do not know anything about these guys.

Thank you for your time Brad and we wish you a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing you back in the octagon in the near future.

Let us know below if you agree with Brad's preview and who you will be picking.

Note:
Tom Niinimaki vs Niklas Backstrom was announced after we spoke with Brad, so no breakdown was given for this fight.

Tor Troeng Meet Trevor Smith at UFC Dublin

Tor Troeng Meet Trevor Smith at UFC Dublin
by Chris Houten  - @mrhouts

A battle between 2 Middleweights hoping to get back in the win column has been confirmed for UFC Dublin.

Former Utimate Fighter Season 17 cast member Tor Troeng (16-5-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) of Sweden will take on American, Trevor Smith (11-5 MMA, 1-2 UFC) at UFC Fight Night 46 in Dublin. UFC Fight Night 46 Dublin takes place July 19th at the The O2 Arena. Tickets for will go on sale to the general public at 10am on Friday 6th June and can be purchased from www.ticketmaster.ie and www.theo2.ie.

Fighting for the 3rd time in his UFC career, Troeng enters the bout looking to rebound from a disappointing decision loss to Rafael Natal at this past Septembers UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs Bader, which snapped a 5 fight win streak.

Fighting out of Sweden's Allstair Training Center alongside top Swedish stars such as Alexander Gustaffson and newly signed UFC featherweight Niklas Bakstrom, Troeng, who has taken 12 of his 16 career victories inside the distance, earned a reputation as one of the finest Middleweight in Europe thanks to wins over current UFC Middleweight Mats Nilsson, and Mark Weir before joining the Utimate Fighter, where he was eliminated in opening round, losing to Josh Samman. A pro since 2005, the 31-year old entered the UFC with a win over Adam Cella at UFC on Fuel TV 9 - Mousasi vs. Latifi in his native Sweden.

Trevor Smith enter the octagon in need of a win to change round the fortunes which have seen him go 1-2 since joining the UFC. Fighting out of Ring Demon Jui-Jitsu in Washington, the 33-year old has arguably yet to prove he deserves to fight on the big stage having come up on both sides of two split-decision results to open his UFC career, defeating Brian Houston but falling short against Ed Herman, before being knocked out by Thales Leites at UFC Fight Night 39 in his most recent outing.

A 4-time Strikeforce vet, where he went 2-2, Smith, Nicknamed 'Hot Sauce' Smith, is a strong grappler with a strong college wrestling background. He has taken 9 of his 11 victories by submission.

Stay tuned to KingdomMMA.co.uk for all the latest on UFC Fight Night 46 Berlin.
 

UFC Fight Night 46: McGregor vs Miller (Fight Card)

UFC Fight Night 46: McGregor vs Miller
Date: July 19th, 2014
o2 Arena, Dublin, Ireland


Fight Card
Conor McGregor vs Cole Miller
Ryan LaFlare vs Gunnar Nelson
Ian McCall vs Brad Pickett
Ilir Latifi vs Tom Lawlor
Cody Donovan vs Nikita Krylov
Phil Harris vs Neil Seery

MMA Retirement: When is enough, enough?

by Chris Marzella @ChrisMarzella

Whose place is it to tell a fighter when enough is enough?

Everyone is forthcoming with retirement advise on a weekly basis, but when is enough really enough?

Case in point was this past Sunday night when Dan Henderson brutally knocked out Shogun Rua.

Rua dominated for two and a half rounds, knocking Henderson down, mounting him and clearly winning the fight. Winning the fight until a H-Bomb detonated on his nose that is.

What we learned coming out of that fight is that Shogun may very well be back to his best.

Coming off of his spectacular knock out of James Te Huna there were many questions relating to Shogun. Well, for over twelve minutes he put on a clinic. He looked fantastic. Hurting Henderson, taking him down. He looked threatening again.

Henderson, well, he didn't look so great. He was sluggish, he got caught with far too many punches for anyones liking. Shogun was dropping him at will and there only seemed one winner.

That is why both men still have a future with the UFC.

Firstly Henderson. When you carry the power that he does you can do this for as long as you choose. Speed and agility desert you first, power lasts the longest. What is clear is that Henderson doesn't belong in fights leading to a title shot.

At 43-years-old and having just signed a six fight contract recently, it could be that time to throw him into purely fun fights. 

Salivate at the prospect of Henderson vs Sonnen, Henderson vs Silva. Even Henderson vs Franklin.

The thought of Henderson mixing it with Gustafsson, Teixeira and the likes isn't exactly enticing.

Shogun on the other hand at 32-years-old should still have years in him. It's the wars he's been through and beatings he has taken that has people calling for his retirement.

However, excluding the result and solely looking at his performance there is no good reason not to go on. Anyone hit with the punch he was hit with would have gone down as was evident by his nose being smeared all over his face.

What it may take to revitalise his career is the same route that Lyoto Machida took, a trip down to middleweight.

He looked in fantastic condition for his last two fights, probably the best shape we've seen him in so cutting to 185-pounds isn't entirely out of the question.

There lies some old rematch as well as new, fresh challenges. Machida, Munoz, Bisping, Le, Belfort, Rockhold, Jacare. Even potentially Anderson Silva.

Whilst the title picture seems just out of reach for Henderson it does leave it slightly open for Shogun should he opt for a change of scenery and a move down to middleweight, despite being knocked out.

Whilst both their routes now seem uncertain, one thing that is certain is that you don't tell guys like Henderson and Shogun when to retire. Both have earned the right to decide that for themselves.

Vaughan Lee talks to Kingdom MMA after victory against Nam Phan in Macao

Vaughan Lee: UFC Fight Night Macao Post Fight Interview

by Ben Heather @benheather

 Last weekend in Macao Vaughan Lee squared off against Nam Phan, going in to the fight it was thought the fight would be a very closely contested bout. However, what happened in Macao could be described as the best performance of Lee's career as he outclassed Phan from start to finish. Now back in the UK Kingdom MMA caught up with Vaughan to talk about his fight and look to the future.

Ben: Firstly congratulations on what must be described as a near perfect performance. When did you fly back to the UK and did you have chance to do some sightseeing in Macao?
Lee: I flew back the day after the fight, and yeah I got to sight see quite a bit, I loved it.

Ben: Have you had chance to watch the fight back and if so, how did you rate your performance?
Lee: Yeah I've watched it 100 times lol, I'd rate my performance 8-9/10

Ben: How far ahead of your fight did you fly out to China to acclimatise?
Lee: We flew out one week before mainly to get over the jet lag and acclimatise.

Ben: Going in to the fight, what was the game plan and were you worried at all about any part of Phan's game?
Lee: I wasn't worried about anything, I wasn't thinking about winning or losing, I was just in the moment of the fight.

Ben: You started out in the first round with your hands really low and stayed like this for most of the fight, was this a psychological move to show Phan that you were not worried about his punches?
Lee: I kept my hands low so that I could use my head movement and just feel loose, not really a psychological tactic but more for comfort.

Ben: Your head and foot movement in the first round was immaculate it left Phan looking second rate and meant you were able to close the 4" reach advantage with ease and work your shots. Did you find it easier than expected to work from close range and get in and out without taking any punishment?
Lee: well anyone that trains with me knows that that's the way that I spar in the gym. I love to stay in the pocket and slip, dodge and counter punches and kicks from close quarters. So doing it in the UFC made me happy.

Ben: You also mixed up all your strikes working punches to the head/ body and legs as well as your kicks was this to constantly keep Phan from guessing where the next attack was coming from?
Lee: Yes to keep him guessing but also to make him hesitant and desperate at the same time. This exposed the holes in his game.

Ben: Would you say that first round was the best round of your MMA career? Complete dominance from you from start to finish.
Lee: Yes I would say it was my best performance to date.

Ben: Did it matter to you at all that you couldn't find the finish which would have been the cherry on the top for this performance?
Lee: It would have been great to get the finish and maybe I would have rated my performance a 10/10 if I had.

Ben: We recently interviewed Phil Harris and he said "Vaughan performed like he does in training, for me it was the performance of the night" how does it feel to receive such great compliments from a fellow fighter?
Lee: Naturally it feels great hearing stuff like that because it's the truth, like he said that's how I perform in training it's just having the confidence to do it in the octagon in front of the world.

Ben: Headlining the event was another UK fighter, John Hathaway. Did you manage to catch up with him while you was in Macao before and/ or after the fights? If after what did you say to him and did he seem ok? After all, after being knocked out like that our first thought was for his health and we all hoped that he was ok.
Lee: Yeah I caught up with John a few times and had chats but they weren't really related to our fights but more about what we're going to eat and drink after we weigh-in and how we think our boys are going to get on in London.. I caught up with him after the fight also and he seemed fine to be in high spirits.

Ben: You have now had 6 fights in the UFC bouncing between wins and losses. Do you think now you are in a good position to push for a win streak of the back of this performance?
Lee: If I can step into the Octagon with the same mentality as I did in Macau then I believe I can beat anybody.

Ben: Since joining the UFC you have fought in your home town of Birmingham, Japan, USA, London, Brazil and now China. What's it like to travel the world and do the job you love doing?
Lee: I'm living my dream, but sometimes living your dream is the hardest and scariest thing to do.

Ben: It could be said that two of your best performances in the UFC have been on events in Asia. First submitting Yamamoto in Japan and now outclassing Phan in Macao. Do you know what it is about fighting in Asia that seems to help your performance?
Lee: I believe it stems from being a little boy dreaming about fighting in Asia, the birth place of martial arts.

Ben: What's next for you, are you still planning to drop to 125 which was talked about before the fight? Or after such a dominant display can we see you sticking about at 135??
Lee: I'm still considering it.

Ben: If you could pick your next fight, who would it be and why?
Lee: To be honest I don't "want" to fight anyone in particular, but I'll fight anyone.

Ben: Did you come away from the fight injury free, if so when would you like to get back in to the octagon?
Lee: I'd love to get a win on the Ireland card being half Irish myself.

Ben: Would you like to thank anyone or any sponsors??
Lee: I'd like to thank Bad Boy, USN, The mouth guard shop, Jamie Reynolds and everyone at the UTC, Gym01 and Triquest gym

Thank you for your time Vaughan, we hope you get your wish and we see you next in Ireland.

Fighter vs Writer - UFC Fight Night London: Calderwood vs Heard - THE REMATCH

Fighter vs Writer: JoJo Calderwood - UFC Fight Night London
by Ben Heather @benheather

Welcome to another Kingdom MMA fighter vs writer challenge.

For this feature we challenge some of the biggest names from the world of MMA to give us their picks and fight outcomes for specific MMA events. Then they will be challenged by one of our writers, who will make their own predictions. Previously we have challenged the likes of Dustin Poirier, Luke Barnatt, Jim Alers, Mike Wilkinson, Phil Harris, Cathal Pendred and Michael Wootten.

This weeks opponent comes in to the battle having already defeated our writer Sam Heard and will be looking to prove once again she is as good at her predictions as she is in the cage. At 8-0 she is one of the favourites to win the soon to be recorded UFC The Ultimate Fighter 20, the first season to be full of women and all of them will fight for the inaugeral UFC 115lb womens belt. She is of course Jojo Calderwood and this weekend our writer Sam Heard will be looking for revenge.

The Scoring
If you predict the correct winner of the fight you will get one point and if you predict the correct method of victory you will get an extra point. However, if the fight ends in a stoppage and you predict the round as well the method you could earn a third bonus point. If the fight goes the distance you can only earn a maximum of two points.

The Predictions

Alexander Gustafsson vs Jimi Manuwa

Calderwood: Man it gets tougher and I hate picking against some awesome fighters.

I said at last night q&a gustafsson will win in the third so I better stick to my guns.

Prediction:  Alexander Gustafsson - Submission Round 3

Heard: As a Croydon native it pains me to pick against one of my own but I think Gustafsson brings too much to the table for Jimi. Though the unbeaten prospect has seen off all his opponents in highly convincing fashion, Manuwa has never fought anyone close to the Swede’s calibre and I believe this step-up in competition will prove too great. It’s important to note also that though Manuwa is billed as the prospect, the 34-year old is getting on in MMA terms and is 7-years the senior of Alexander.

I personally would’ve preferred to see Jimi fight a fringe top-10 Light Heavyweight next rather than the guy who arguably beat Jon Jones in his last Octagon outing. The man who has never been past the second round will more than likely find himself in very deep water in a five-rounder against the aspiring 205-lbs champ.

Prediction: Alexander Gustafsson - TKO (punches) Round 4

Melvin Guillard vs Michael Johnson

Calderwood: Melvin by second round knockout, just on his explosiveness and experience.

Prediction: Melvin Guillard - KO Round 2

Heard: Though it was disappointing news to hear of Ross Pearson’s injury, I’m probably more excited to see this fight between two excellent 155-lbs strikers as I feel like we already knew Guillard had Pearson’s number.

Johnson’s so-so record has stopped me picking him in the past but after his last two performances against  top-notch opponents it’s a tall order to not hop on the Johnson hype train. I expect the huge improvements he’s made since training with the Blackzilians to come into play here, allowing him to most likely counter punch his way to victory against the explosively powerful yet inconsistent Guillard. Both men have reasonably solid chins so I expect Johnson to pick up a close, highly compelling decision.

Prediction: Michael Johnson - Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Brad Pickett vs Neil Seery

Calderwood: I'm hoping for an upset as I've been around Neil and his camp, tough tough debut though and it would be a Rocky story if he pulls it off.

Prediction: Neil Seery - TKO Round 2

Heard: While I can’t really be disappointed about the replacement Co-Main event I am certainly a bit upset with this one.

Once one of the most highly anticipated fights on the card featuring a floundering Ian McCall looking to rebound against Brad Pickett, we now see a mismatch with Brad making his Flyweight debut against a UFC debutant. I don’t expect this one to be very competitive at all. For me, it’s just a question of whether Pickett outright KOs him or rocks him on the feet before sinking in a choke.

Prediction: Brad Pickett - TKO (punches) Round 2

Gunnar Nelson vs Omari Akhmedov

Calderwood: Probably the one I'm most looking forward to, Nelson has great movement and I think the ground work in this fight will be a great watch for the fans.

Prediction: Gunnar Nelson - Submission Round 2

Heard: Another close matchup which could feasibly go either way. Nelson will likely try to get the fight to the floor where he will be able to work his terrific ground game but I feel like he might have a difficult time doing so against Akmedov’s sambo experience.

The Russian’s have been causing waves in the UFC and I think if he can keep it standing Akhmedov’s heavy hands will allow him to continue this Russian domination.

Prediction: Omari Akhmedov - KO (punch) Round 3

Cyrille Diabate vs Ilir Latifi

Calderwood: I think Latifi will wrestle his way to a decision here.

Prediction: Ilir Latifi - Decision

Heard: In this intriguing clash of a tall, rangy Light Heavyweight against a short, compact one, I expect Ilir Latifi to get the win. Though the bookies have the two at near level odds, I believe the Swede has some key advantages in this matchup. Diabate has easily fought the tougher competition but he has been around the block a bit, nearing his 41st birthday. Latifi is a decade younger and I believe his power will allow him to grind out a decision.

Prediction: Ilir Latifi - Unanimous Decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Luke Barnatt vs Mats Nilsson

Calderwood: I think Luke will use his reach and strike to victory, potentially even the KO of the night.

Prediction: Luke Barnatt - KO Round 2

Heard: The card’s other clash of a Brit and a Swede and this time I can say that I comfortably expect the Englishman to be victorious. Though Nilsson has shown himself to be a force to be reckoned with at Cage Warriors, it’s very hard to pick against Luke after that amazing UFC fight in Manchester.

Prediction: Luke Barnatt - TKO (punches) Round 2

Brad Scott vs Claudio Henrique da Silva

Calderwood: Brad will be better than Claudio in all areas in this fight.

Prediction: Brad Scott - Decision

Heard: I believe Brad is a criminally underrated fighter and his experience against superior opponents and the fact that this is now his third UFC fight will get him the win over the London-based Brazilian. Silva hasn’t been finished before however and his only loss came by DQ so it should be a competitive decision victory for Brad.

Prediction: Brad Scott by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Davey Grant vs Roland Delorme

Calderwood: I really like watching Davey Grant on TUF and he will win this fight.

Prediction: Davey Grant - TKO Round 3

Heard: I expect this one to be a Fight of the Night candidate. Both guys keep up a high tempo and mix it up well. However, once again I’m going to have to follow my mind instead of my heart to ensure I beat JoJo this time around and say that Delorme wins a thrilling decision.

In his last fight he lost a very debatable split decision to Alex Caceres who has since looked like a world beater in the Bantamweight division. I believe Davey Grant is undeniably UFC calibre but Roland Delorme is a stud.

Prediction: Roland Delorme - Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Igor Araujo vs Danny Mitchell

Calderwood: I see Danny Mitchell pulling off a reversed flying 360 triangle or something crazy.

Prediction: Danny Mitchell - Submission Round 2

Heard: Another clash of grapplers and another difficult pick. I’m going to pick on the side of caution and say that the more experienced Brazilian who has already picked up his first win in the Octagon will continue his run and add a brace of UFC wins to his record.

Prediction: Igor Araujo - Submission Round 3

Phil Harris vs Louis Gaudinot

Calderwood: This will be a competitive fight, but I think Phil will edge it.

Prediction: Harris - Decision

Heard: This one is a tough one to call as both flyweights favour their submission games rather than trading strikes so the question is really who is the more competent grappler (and unfortunately also who has a style which will appeal to the fickle judges more).

This could well be because Phil Harris is such a credit to the world of MMA, but I believe he’s going to land some big Judo throws which will send everyone in the crowd wild and get some vital top position to win a close decision.

Prediction: Phil Harris - Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

So that's our predictions for the fights, we will be live tweeting on Saturday night as always and we will keep you all informed as to how the challenge is going with latest scores throughout the main card.

Thanks again to JoJo for providing us with her picks for this weekends fights and it just leaves me to say.... May the best man or woman win!!

Phil Harris UFC Fight Night London Pre Fight Interview

Phil Harris talks to Kingdom MMA ahead of his fight in London

by Sam Heard @SamHeard_

On Saturday night in London's O2 arena the UFC will return to England for UFC Fight Night London: Gustafsson vs Manuwa. Opening up the event on Saturday night will be Phil Harris who will face off against Louis Gaudinot in a flyweight battle. Phil returns to fight in London where last February he picked up his first win in the Octagon and will be looking to add to that this weekend. Today Phil took some time out of his schedule to talk to Kingdom MMA about his fight and a few more topics such as John Lineker, Vaughan Lee and Davey Grant.

Sam: Thanks again for the interview ahead of your fight in London, we really appreciate your time.
How are you feeling with just under a week to go before the big fight? Has the training camp gone well?
Harris: Training camp has been very good, I'm feeling great and ready to fight.

Sam: Gaudinot clearly represents a completely different challenge to John Lineker, but are there any adjustments you will be making from your last fight?
Harris: We've worked on a few things for this fight that I'll be putting into action come Saturday.

Sam: At 1-2 in the UFC do you see this fight as all or nothing for your UFC career?
Harris: Pretty much, but I don't think about it.

Sam: Let's take a look back to your last fight, How did you feel when Lineker once again failed to make weight last October? Do you feel it put you at a disadvantage?
Harris: Being heavier is definitely an advantage it's annoying, I knew it was likely that he would miss weight.

Sam: Would you agree that in your last fight after getting caught with some heavy punches early on you forgot about your game plan and tried to compete with Lineker at his own game?
Harris: Yeah I made the mistake of wanting to get into a war and get FOTN I've learnt a lot from fight.

Sam: Do you think if you were given the opportunity to fight Lineker and stuck to the plan you had trained it would have been a different outcome?
Harris: Definitely I'd love to fight him again at some point.

Sam: The man who beat Gaudinot in his last fight is now scheduled to fight rank #2 Joseph Benavidez. Where do you hope a win over Gaudinot would put you in the division?
Harris: Just as long as I'm moving up closer to that title I'm happy, I think that's a way off ATM though. I've got to get some solid wins first.

Sam: You’ve fought in some of the biggest venues around the country from Wembley to the Phones 4U arena and will soon be throwing down in the O2 arena. Would you say it’s preferential to fight in London, closer to your hometown in Portsmouth, over Manchester or does it not really factor in?
Harris: I like fighting in London it feels like home to me, the fans will be behind me, it will give me that little edge.

Sam: With a win in London, would you like your next fight to still be on a UK UFC event or would you like to travel the world and fight like your fellow UFC fighter and occasional training partner Vaughan Lee?
Harris: I do prefer fighting in the UK but I'd like a fight in Vegas the home of fighting!

Sam: Have you had chance to see Vaughan Lee's fight yet and if so what did you think to Vaughan's performance in Macau?
Harris: I've just seen it, Vaughan performed like he does in training, for me it was the performance of the night. I was very impressed and very happy for him.

Sam: What has it been like experiencing the growth of MMA in the UK having been one of the early pioneers in the UK?
Harris: It's come along way from the days of training in garages and fighting in tiny clubs full of smoke. It's a great sport and I can't wait to see how it continues to evolve over the next 10 years.

Sam: Also on the same card as you is the guy you have been training with for this event, Davey Grant. What's it been like training with Davey and have you picked up any skills from him that you will be using in this fight?
Harris: Davey is a top guy it was great having him at the gym, we both got a lot out of training together and I will for sure be doing it again. I'm looking forward to seeing him win his fight.

Sam: Would you like to thank any one?
Harris: Thanks to all my sponsors and all at gym01 Portsmouth.

Best of luck with your fight on March 8th, thank you so much for your time Phil, we really appreciate it.

Danny Mitchell UFC Fight Night London Pre Fight Interview

Kingdom MMA talk to Danny Mitchell before his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 38

by Chris Marzella @ChrisMarzella

An array of European fighters are gearing up for yet another UFC EMEA event. One of the UFC's Brit influx looking to get off to a winning start this Saturday night is Danny "The Cheesecake Assassin" Mitchell who will make his UFC debut at the O2.

A charismatic character boasting an impressive record the "Chesecake Assassin", a nickname given to him he says because "I like cakes and I like violence", takes on welterweight Igor Araujo and will not only be looking for the debut win but for a memorable performance in the process.

Speaking to KingdomMMA.co.uk Mitchell said:

"I think the most important thing is just to be myself and not hold anything back.

"Many people suffer the UFC jitters in their debut bout and it can cripple your usual game so it's just a case of trying to stay relaxed and fighting the way I want to fight. I think my style is pretty entertaining and I just hope it's a good one for all the fans."

It's fair comment that Mitchell has already faced UFC calibre competition before even stepping foot in the octagon. However, as far as he's concerned none of that matters when he's under the bright lights of the O2.

"There's lots of great talent in the UFC and ultimately that is where everyone wants to test themselves. I definitely think I am at the level to be in there" Mitchell said. He added: "I have fought some tough guys and that should stand me in good stead for the big show.

"Thing is with MMA it's so hard to judge fights on people's past experience as there are so many variables within a fight and people are always changing their training, their style and that is what makes this sport so exciting!"

Araujo is a skilled jiu jitsu artist but Mitchell is adamant that he is fully prepared for all eventualities.
Mitchell said:

"He is a good black belt who favours submissions on the ground but again this is MMA and anything can happen."

"Its so hard to predict how the fight will go so it's all about preparing for every outcome and making sure all your bases are covered. I will be prepared on the feet and on the ground, as I am sure he will be too."

With the UFC global expansion plans well underway there are more and more talents visiting multiple countries on various continents. Mitchell is one of many Brits to be given the nod March 8, he said:

"It's always good to get kicked off in England, I have a lot of fans and support travelling down which will be a great boost for me and I am looking forward to the atmosphere in the o2 on March 8th. Its gonna be crazy!

As he enters the final week of his preparations Mitchell is raring for fight day, saying:

"Me and my coaches have watched the tape and figured a few things out. He's skilled opponent and tough but then again so is every fighter in the UFC!

"All the hard training and prep is done now, just a few pounds to lose and the rest is history."

Danny Mitchell vs Igor Araujo takes place on March 8 at UFC Fight Night 38 from the O2, London.

UFC extends agreement with BT Sport to broadcast EMEA & Asia fight nights

BT Sport agrees deal to show UFC London live plus more fight night shows

The first event this will include will be UFC Fight Night London: Gustafsson vs Manuwa on the 8th March at O2 Arena, London.

The UFC has announced an agreement with BT Sport to broadcast its six EMEA Fight Nights live, in addition to delayed broadcasts of the Asia Fight Nights. The agreement is an extension to the current contract, which already sees the channel broadcast the UFC’s global events, and will now offer more live UFC content on TV.

The deal will begin with UFC Fight Night London: Gustafsson vs Manuwa on 8th March live from London’s O2 Arena. The EMEA and ASIA Fight Nights are a collection of events throughout some the major cities in Europe and Asia as the UFC begins to significantly increase its presence in the regions through locally driven prime time content. The new access will give subscribers live prime time viewing access, including every bout on the fight card and behind the scenes footage, along with our weekly Beyond The Octagon programming.

Garry Cook, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of UFC EMEA, said:

“We are delighted to be working with BT Sport on our exciting new EMEA and Asia Fight Nights. They have been a fantastic partner of the UFC here in the UK and this will only strengthen our relationship.

“British fans want to see more and more of the UFC during prime time TV and this extended agreement will allow them to watch every single fight, and much more, throughout the EMEA and Asia Fight Nights.”

Simon Green, Head of BT Sport said:

“UFC is one of the fastest growing sports in the world and we’re very happy to be adding these new FIGHT NIGHTS to our UFC content.  We know that UFC fans in the UK will be delighted to hear this news.”

UFC Fight Night London: Gustafsson vs Manuwa starts at 5.30 p.m. GMT at the O2 Arena. For further details on the event and the full fight card, please visit http://uk.ufc.com/event/ufc-london#/fight.
For more information about UFC, its events and programming, please visit http://uk.ufc.com.

Kingdom MMA reaction:

This is of course huge news for the UK fans who have been asking questions regarding TV coverage of the UFC London event for a long time now. I always thought that a deal would be agreed for this event, as it was with the Singapore event to show it on BT Sport. However to have agreed a deal for all EMEA events to be shown live is more than I expected as I expected the non UK events to be a Fight Pass only event.

The fact the Asia cards will be shown on tape delay isn't a problem either, lets face it. No TV provider would allow UFC to be shown live at 11am anyway and I quite enjoyed watching the Singapore card in the evening. If you want to watch it live then the option to watch on Fight Pass will still be available anyway.

From the wording of the press release it may even include showing the prelims as well for all of these events as it says "this extended agreement will allow them to watch every single fight". If this is the case then it is brilliant news and a massive step to help promote the up and coming British talent on the UFC London card such as Brad Scott and Luke Barnatt who's fights never disappoint and more fans will now have the opportunity to see these warriors fight.

UFC target Diego Brandao vs. Will Chope for UFC Fight Night 38

Brandao vs. Chope planned for UFC Fight Night 38

by Chris Houten @mrhouts

A featherweight bout between Diego Brandao (18-9 MMA, 4-2 UFC) and Will Chope (19-6 MMA, 0-1 UFC) is being targeted for UFC Fight Night 38. MMAjunkie.com announced the bout earlier today, however UFC officials have yet officially announce the bout.

UFC Fight Night 38 takes place March 23 at Ginasio Nelio Dias in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil in his headlined by a rematch between Dan Henderson and Shogun Rua.

The Ultimate Fighter season 14 winner, Diego Brandao enters the bout with Chope looking to get back to winning ways, having had a 3 fight win streak snapped by Dustin Poirier in his most recent bout at UFC 168. 

A product a Jackson's MMA, the Brazilian won The Ultimate Fighter season 14 by defeating current high-flying featherweight Dennis Bermudez in the finale. Upon winning the show, Brandao lost to Darren Elkins, before beating Joey Gambino, Pablo Garza and Daniel Pineda in succession.

His opponent, 6-foot-4 Will Chope, enters the bout with Brandao looking for his first UFC victory, having lost to Max Holloway by 2nd round TKO his debut at UFC Fight Night 34 in Singapore. The loss snapped a 14 fight win streak for the Californian who fights out of  Maha Sarakham in Thailand.

With the addition of Brandao vs Chope, UFC Fight Night 38 card now includes:

Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio Rua
C.B. Dollaway vs. Cezar Ferreira
Norman Parke vs. Leonardo Santos
Fabio Maldonado vs. Gian Villante
Rony Jason vs. Steven Siler
Mairbek Taisumov vs. Gleison Tibau
Ronny Markes vs. Thiago “Marreta” Santos
Jussier Formiga vs. Scott Jorgensen
Thiago Perpetuo vs. Kenny Robertson
Diego Brandao vs. Will Chope*

UFC Fight Night 37 fight card Official - Main Card

UFC announce the finalised line up for UFC Fight Night 37 - Kingdom MMA review the Main Card

by Ben Heather @benheather

With the tickets for UFC Fight Night 37 now on sale to fight club members and those who have signed up to the UFC Newsletter it has been announced that the line up for the event has been finalised.

UFC Fight Night 37 marks the return to the UK of the UFC and its first show in Europe of 2014. The fight card has been set at 10 fights and will consist of a 4 fight main card and 6 prelim fights.

Currently the event is not due to be scheduled on BT Sports in the UK as this event is a UFC Fight Pass Event and so not on TV in the US. So today Kingdom MMA spoke to Simon Head (@simonhead), Digital Producer of UFC for BT sports to see what the latest news was regarding the event being shown on tv and he had the following to say.

"At the moment all we can confirm are the events on our schedule page here. If and when other events are added, they'll be added to this page. If UFC London is one of them, obviously we'll make an announcement."

In my opinion BT Sports have already proved to be a great success for the UFC in the UK and I believe they will do anything they possibly can to show this event live on BT Sports on March 8th. If you think back the first event which was shown exclusively on Fight Pass was UFC Singapore and BT Sport were able to find a resolution and show the event on tape delay in the UK. In all honesty it was never going to be shown live at the time due to the content at 11am so this was a great result for the UK fans.

Kingdom MMA will now take a look at the main card and discuss what is on the line in each match up.

Omari Akhmedov vs Gunnar Nelson

Akhmedov (12-1 MMA 1-0 UFC) debuted for the UFC last year in Brazil putting on a real show for the fans and won by knocking out Thiago Perpetuo in the first round to pick up the bonus for the fight of the night. Not a bad way to start your career in the UFC but now he will be facing the toughest opponent of his career in Icelandic fighter Gunnar Nelson (11-0-1 MMA 2-0 UFC).

Nelson will come in to the fight as the crowd favourite having fought 10 out of the 12 fights in his career in either the UK or Ireland. I predict Nelson will attempt to get the fight to ground as soon as possible and showcase his BJJ skills en route to a submission victory. My only concern with Nelson is the fact it will be over a year since his last fight when he walks in to the Octagon in March so we will have to see if he can pick up where he left off and keep his undefeated record.

Ian McCall vs Brad Pickett

Pickett (23-8 MMA 3-3 UFC) has to be one of the best MMA fighters to watch. He comes in to fights, stands his ground and is happy to put it all on the line and trade blows in the centre of the Octagon. Yes his UFC record isn't the best but look at who he has fought. His losses have come against the now champion of the bantamweight division Renan Barao and former title contenders Eddie Wineland and Michael McDonald. It's not like he has lost to chumps, these guys are the best of the elite fighters at bantamweight which led Pickett to drop down to flyweight where he will meet Ian McCall (12-4-1 MMA 1-2-1 UFC) in London for his flyweight debut.

Ian McCall has always been a flyweight contender ever since the UFC introduced the division in March 2012. He took Demetrious Johnson to a draw when they first fought in the division and in the final round of that fight looked like he might be able to stop Johnson however couldn't and lost the rematch. Now he is looking forard to welcoming Pickett to the division. It will be an explosive fight and a real test to see where Pickett ranks in the division. After all Brad Pickett is one of only two men to have a win over the champ Demetrious Johnson so a win against McCall could push him all the way to finally getting that UFC title shot he craves so bad.

It will certainly be a great fight for the fans so don't blink because as always I expect Brad Pickett to try and finish this fight as early as possible.

Melvin Guillard vs #13 Michael Johnson

This fight was originally meant to be the rematch between Melvin Guillard (31-12-2-2 MMA 12-8-1 UFC) and Ross Pearson following the no contest ruling to there fight back in October. However last week Ross Pearson had to be pulled out of this fight due to a knee injury. This came as a big disappointment to the fans. However, I for one am very happy about the match up we will now see as the co main event of UFC Fight Night 37.

Michael Johnson (14-8 MMA 6-4 UFC) has stepped in to replace the injured Pearson and I can't think of a better replacement (that realistically) could have taken this fight. Johnson has been on a tear of late defeating Joe Lauzon in his hometown and then following that up at UFC 168 by knocking out Gleison Tibau. Johnson is similar to Pearson is some respect in that he loves to keep the fight on its feet and will happily stand and bang with Guillard who is also known for this in his fights.

I expect this fight to be up there in the fight of the night category once all is said and done. It will be either this fight or the previous McCall vs Pickett fight that takes home the bonus money but these fighters will certainly put on a show for the fans.

Main Event: #1 Alexander Gustafsson vs #11 Jimi Manuwa

This has all the attributes of a great fight, both guys have proven knock out power and will be coming to make a statement. This is without doubt the biggest fight in Jimi's life. Lets face it though, I can't think of a better way to do it. Manuwa (14-0 MMA 3-0 UFC) will be headlining his first UFC event in his hometown of London in front of a packed crowd, trying to keep his undefeated record intact against the guy who many say deserves to be the champ now. If dreams come true, this has to be up there with the best dream Manuwa could have predicted. It will certainly be a step up in competition for him but a win will propell him to the very elite level of the division and not far from a title shot.

For Gustafsson (15-2 MMA 7-2 UFC), he will be coming in to this fight with everything to lose against a very strong opponent but the prize for risking it is that rematch he desires so badly with Jon Jones. Although he is a european fan favourite he will be walking in to the Manuwa's home town and will not have the fans on his side for this fight.

If the fight stays standing then I predict somebody will be getting knocked out, however Alexander Gustafsson just became the first man to take down Jon Jones and I see him having a lot easier job of getting Manuwa down. If he does, he will certainly have the advantage in the fight. However, it was rumoured that Manuwa may be training with Daniel Cormier for part of this fight camp so we will have to wait and see what happens on fight night.

The full card is as follows

Main Card
Alexander Gustafsson vs Jimi Manuwa
Melvin Guillard vs Michael Johnson
Ian McCall vs Brad Pickett
Omari Akhmedov vs Gunnar Nelson

Prelims
Cyrille Diabate vs Ilir Latifi
Luke Barnatt vs Mats Nilsson
Brad Scott vs Claudio Henrique da Silva
Roland Delorme vs Davey Grant
Igor Araujo vs Danny Mitchell
Louis Gaudinot vs Phil Harris

That marks the end of my preview of the main card for UFC Fight Night 37. Do you agree with my comments? Please comment below with your thoughts.

Tickets are on sale now for this event at www.ticketmaster.co.uk

Two TUF champions set to face off in Brazil

Norman Parke set to meet Leonardo Santos at UFC Fight Night 38

by Sam Heard @SamHeard_

‘Stormin’ has become one of the most fitting fighter nicknames in the UFC, with Norman Parke (19-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) on a nine fight streak.

Reports from Brazilian site MMA Informativo indicate that Parke’s next match-up will take place at UFC Fight Night 38 against fellow TUF winner Leonardo Santos (12-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC). The main event for this fight card is scheduled to be the second meeting of Dan Henderson and Shogun Rua, a rematch of what is considered to be one of the greatest bouts in MMA history.

Since winning The Ultimate Fighter: Smashes series with a decision victory over self-proclaimed oddball Colin ‘Freakshow’ Fletcher, Parke has added a further two decision wins to his record over Kazuki Tokudome and Jon Tuck. Though he is yet to pick up that important first UFC stoppage, Parke has distinguished himself with his crisp, technical kickboxing skills and super-human cardio. Indeed, in his last outing against knockout artist Jon Tuck, Parke’s cardio advantage was what allowed him to outwork Tuck on the feet enroute to getting the nod from the judges.
Parke’s next challenge comes in the shape of TUF: Brazil 2 winner Leonardo Santos. Santos is easily the most talented grappler to have crossed Parke’s path; of the Brazilian’s 12 wins, a whopping eight have come by submission. Santos became the TUF winner with a highly skilled arm-triangle victory over William Macario on UFC on FUEL 10: Nogueira vs Werdum. This was that card you may remember from last year which broke records for having the most wins coming by submission; eight out of 12 fights ended with the loser tapping, the same as Santos’ submission record – weird…
This fight looks to be the classic grappler versus striker affair. It will be a tall order for Santos’ first UFC fight as the TUF champion to be facing Parke who is already on a roll in the Octagon. However, the notorious home-field advantage of fighting in Brazil is likely to give Santos an edge. Moreover, Santos fought in the TUF Brazil 2 tournament at Welterweight but has since made the drop to his more natural Lightweight – this drop in division may well translate into a strength advantage. This match is certain to be highly competitive.
This clash of TUF champs looks to be an intriguing, well-balanced matchup. Over here at Kingdom MMA we’ll be backing Norman to keep Stormin and get the job done in Brazil.

Brad Pickett Talks to Kingdom MMA About His Upcoming Fight with Ian McCall

Kingdom MMA caught up with Brad "One Punch" Pickett to discuss dropping to 125lbs and his next fight

by Ben Heather @benheather and Tommy Strong @Strong_tea

On Friday we caught up with the one and only Brad "One Punch" Pickett (23-8 MMA 3-3 UFC) to discuss the news which was recently announced on UFC Beyond The Octagon where he announced he was going to be dropping to flyweight and will fight Ian "Uncle Creepy" McCall (12-4-1 MMA 1-2-1 UFC) in his flyweight debut at the O2 Arena in his home town of London on 8th March 2014.

That fight certainly has already got a lot of buzz surrounding it and people are excited to see just how Brad gets on at flyweight. So we asked him:

Ben: Firstly, thank you for taking the time to speak to us today. What made you decide that it was the right time now to drop down in weight?
Pickett: I made the decision originally to drop down in weight when i was on my honeymoon. I had a lot of time to myself as it was really quiet in the Maldives and you start thinking about a lot of things.

For me being a fighter, I needed challenges. At the moment I am ranked number 5 in the bantamweight division. There are four people above me, I have fought three of them and lost to all of them so there wasn't really anywhere for me to go. The only people I had left to fight were people who were ranked lower than myself and for me that was something to not really be motivated for and I wanted motivating and I wanted to have a challenge.

With me not being the biggest bantamweight I thought it would be possible to go down a weight class, to reinvent myself and to have a new challenge so that's what I did. Also, the other factor in it is I have a win over the champion so that was another little factor but it wasn't the main factor. The main factor was to get a new challenge.

Ben: Had you thought about it at all before the McDonald fight?
Pickett: No, It was when I was on my honeymoon. I had the McDonald fight and if I had beat him I would have been in line for a title shot. You don't look to change things when you are winning its when you lose that you look to change things so I didn't even think about it until after I got married and was on my honeymoon.

Ben: Was it completely your idea to drop down in weight or had it been suggested to you beforehand which led you to consider it?
Pickett: It has always been loosely suggested because obviously I have beaten Demetrious Johnson so everyone would suggest it but I have never really looked at it as a possibility, as I wasn't doing too bad as a bantamweight. I was up there in the mix and with a win or two I was in line for a title shot so that's why I didn't want to lose another 10lbs and go down a weight class. As soon as there was no more challenges left for me at that weight class I wanted to make a new challenge for myself.

Ben: Have you done a trial cut or do you have plans to do a practise cut before your fight?
Pickett: I don't do test weight cuts, I don't believe in them personally. Its a really mentally tough thing to do weight cutting if you're cutting a lot of weight and I think unless you have something at the end of it, like a fight you're not really gonna mentally do it.

I will make the weight but I will do it when it comes to fight I've got everything in order. Obviously I walk around a lot lighter now, I walk around 10lbs lighter now because I've got to cut that extra 10lbs and now I am stabilised at this weight as well I don't have to diet to stay here.

Ben: Will Christmas have any impact on the weight and drop to flyweight? After all its a time when people tend to eat more unhealthy foods.
Pickett: Not too bad, my weight is quite good at the moment. I will eat over Christmas and I still got a lot of time next year to do it and I am going away in January to America and that's when I will concentrate a lot more on the weight cut.

Ben: Will you be going back to American Top Team for this camp?
Pickett: Yes I will be going back to Florida, that's always where I do my training camps so I am looking forward to going back there. I will be there for 8 weeks and come back a week before the fight

Ben: What do you think you gain by going to America and ATT that you cant get in the UK?
Pickett: one, there is a lot more full time training partners so I have a lot more full time people who are my size to train with.

The other factors and the reason I go to America is because I go away to train so I can get away from my day to day distractions. The lifestyle you are used to eating, diet, your friends and your social life. Its hard to concentrate on a training camp when you are still around everything. That's why I go to America because its so easy to switch on and focus on my diet, my training, everything and its all about me just training for this fight.

Ben: When you knew that you was going to be dropping down to flyweight did you ask to fight McCall or was this fight given to you?
Pickett: I like to look at fights that make sense and to me the McCall fight made sense. He was available as he was supposed to fight Scott Jorgensen and he got injured so timing wise he will be back in the right time and I wanted to fight a tough opponent within the weight class so Ian made sense.

Ben: What do you think McCall's main strengths are and how do you match up to them?
Pickett: His main strengths.... well he is very well rounded and I am very well rounded but I do believe I am a little bit better than him in every area.

Ben: How does it feel knowing you will be fighting in your home town for the UFC?
Pickett: Yeah I am excited, I have fought in London before and I have fought for the UFC before but I have never fought in London for the UFC and for me to do that at the O2 which in my eyes is the best arena in Europe let alone England. I can't wait I am so excited

Ben: What are your opinions of the other contenders to the flyweight belt. Guys such as Lineker, Benevidez and Dodson to name just a couple.
Pickett: They are all exciting fights and fighters to watch but to me at the minute I am just focusing on McCall. Hopefully I will be able to beat McCall and then I can look at other people after the fight. They are all exciting and well rounded and the division is getting more stacked all the time so its an exciting division to be involved in.

Ben: Do you believe a win over McCall and the fact you have beaten Demetrious Johnson before will be enough to get you a title fight off the back of this fight?
Pickett: I believe so. I think he has cleaned out most of the weightclass at the moment and there is no real contenders for him that he hasn't thought so I believe a win over McCall could potentially put me in line for a title shot.

Ben: Would you like to thank anyone?
Pickett: Yeah I would like to thank all my supporters and all my fans.
My two teams American Top Team and Team Titan and all of my sponsors who have supported me.

Thank you so much for your time to do the interview with us and we wish you a safe trip to America for the camp and can't wait to see you fight in your home town on March 8th. Also we would like to take this opportunity to wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you and all of your family.

Has Antonio Silva Put His "BigFoot" In It This Time?

Does Silva's failed drug test take anything away from his battle with Mark Hunt?

by Tommy Strong @strong_tea

Just over a week ago in the early hours of Sunday morning, I found myself climbing off my comfy sofa and standing to applaud both fighters in awe of one of the finest fights I've had the privilege of watching! Antonio Silva and Mark Hunt gave everything they had in their main event battle in what surely will go down as one of the best fights of the year!

Though, a week later it feels as something has been taken away from that fight. Having heard Antonio Silva failed his post fight drugs test for elevated levels of TRT. Just those three letters are driving fans away from a sport we all love and admire.

This isn't the first time Silva has failed a drugs test. The first was back in 2008 having won the EliteXC heavyweight championship by beating Justin Eilers. He later tested positive for using a banned substance Boldenone where he received a $2,500 fine and a year ban from the sport.

The UFC have notable fighters who have a TRT exemption the likes of Chael Sonnen, Vitor Belfort, Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin and Frank Mir to name a few. Before this weeks news of Silva failing his post fight drugs test for elevated levels of TRT, I wasn't even aware Silva had an exemption. Prompting me to think who else is on this without us knowing?

Whether you believe its a performance enhancer or not, something has to be done to make it an even playing field! Fighters are always looking to get that edge, but it shouldn't come at the safety of the fighters?
But thats for another debate.

Will this take anything away from the fight? If Im honest with himself I don't think it will. Silly as it probably sounds. If the fight had title implications then maybe it would've bothered me more. I'm not condoning the use of PEDS or TRT as I'm the first to speak out about any form of use. I just feel though for some reason, when I think of this fight the TRT isn't stuck in my head.

My honest feeling about this is too many fighters are trying to gain an advantage using TRT when 'maybe' they don't need it!

Antonio Silva has pleaded his innocence today, claiming on Facebook:

"I'm cool because I know that the mistake was not made by me, he wrote. I never tried doing anything wrong for my fight."

Not only has Silva forgone his $50k fight of the night bonus he earn't for the fight, he will see himself sitting on the sidelines for 9 months before he's granted his license back.

Maybe the only winner from all this is Mark Hunt who not only collects $50,000 for fight of the night bonus, but also picks up Antonio Silva's $50,000 in the process!

Well done Mark!!

Phil Harris chats to Kingdom MMA about UFC Fight Night 30 "I'm here to win no matter what"

Kingdom MMA catch up with Phil Harris before he meets John Lineker at UFC Manchester on Saturday night

by Ben Heather @benheather

Saturday night marks the UFC's return to the UK, unfortunately the original main event which was Michael Bisping's return to the UK was cancelled when he was forced to pull out due to recurrence of his detached retina injury. But the replacement main event was a fitting replacement as the UK will see Lyoto Machida make his middleweight debut. However the main card kicks off with a flyweight battle in which the UK's own Phil Harris takes on John Lineker. Originally this fight was due to take place in Brazil but Harris got injured and so Manchester will now host the fight and today we got chance to catch up with Phil Harris.

Ben: Hi Phil, Thanks for your time, how has the camp gone for this fight and where have you been preparing for this fight?
Harris: The camp has gone really well I've done all of my camp at gym01 in Portsmouth we have lots of great fighters in the lighter weights to make sure I'm ready also the likes of Vaughan Lee, Mark Handley and Joe Lawerence have been down to help with some sparring.

Ben: How excited are you to get back in the octagon after a spell on the sides due to injury?
Harris: It's not been that long about 6 months but I'm itching to get back in there this is what I love to do.

Ben: This is your first main card slot with the UFC. Does that give you extra motivation to grab people's attention whilst the spotlight is on you?
Harris: It certainly will get me noticed more being on the main card, but it really doesn't affect me to much, I'm here to win no matter what.

Ben: You have pretty much had two full camps preparing for this fight, how motivated are you to get the win?
Harris: I'm mega motivated and 100% focused for this fight.

Ben: How much of an advantage do you think the change of location will have for you. Last time you was due to fight in Brazil and now you have the home country advantage.
Harris: It definitely helps, I've no jet lag, I know what the food is like I have the crowd on my side, all these things help in the build up to the fight and in the fight, its nice to have the crowd cheering for you.

Ben: What did you make to his performance last time out at UFC 163 where he beat Jose Maria Tome?
Harris: He looked good, but Jose Maria tome was a late replacement and probably not in the best shape to fight.

Ben: Lineker has a bit of a reputation for missing weight going in to fights, has this thought crossed your mind at all and what is your opinion on fighters constantly missing weight?
Harris: Not at all I'm sure he will make weight this time. It's not professional missing weight but these things can happen.

Ben: We all know John Lineker hits very hard, how do you prepare for that in sparring without getting cut/hurt?
Harris: It's a matter of sparring cleaver I wear big gloves and head protection. Also it's a case of building up conditioning over weeks of a training camp.

Ben: Obviously you have been given the all clear after fracturing your orbital bone before you were scheduled to fight John the first time in Brazil at UFC 163 but has it caused you any issues in training for this fight?
Harris: No I've got a decent head guard and train cleaver not reckless and I didn't start sparring again till I had the all clear to do so.

Ben: A win over John Lineker is a very big deal. Especially when the division is still finding its feet and is short in numbers. Where do you think a win puts you?
Harris: Beating John will push me a step closer to UFC gold that's all that matters. Keep moving forward.

Thank you for your time and good luck on Saturday night, all of the guys from the site will be there cheering you on along with everyone else in the arena.

Belfort vs Henderson set for UFC Fight Night 32

Vitor Belfort agrees Dan Henderson rematch

by Jack Broadey @J3cK_b

Vitor Belfort has not seemed to need Joe Silva's help in matching him recently. He's gone from calling out Chris Weidman, on to Chael Sonnen and finally settled on a Dan Henderson rematch.

Logically the fight makes no sense. He didn't want to fight Tim Kennedy as he wasn't ranked in the top 10. He didn't want Sonnen as he wanted a shot at Weidman's Middleweight belt. As soon as Sonnen found a matchup with Wanderlei Silva he suddenly became interested again. In short Belfort is a hard man to read. If the reason for avoiding the Kennedy fight was fair and logical the Henderson fight should surely fall under the same banner.

Henderson is obviously a danger and we all know what he's capable of on a good day. Are those good days behind him now? He's not ranked at Middleweight or Light Heavyweight, he doesn't fight very often, he's lost two fights in a row and Belfort has already beaten him, albeit 7 years ago. The fight smacks of Belfort taking the biggest name available willing to travel to Brazil. He keeps saying he's not hiding in Brazil to get away with his TRT usage but the fights in Brazil keep coming. The longer fights like this one spring up the more questions will be asked.

From Dan Henderson's point of view it must of been an easy decision to make to accept the fight. From being on the cusp of a title shot to being on a two fight skid is an extreme in itself. Neither loss was particularly damaging, infact there is an argument Henderson could of got the nod in both the Machida and Evans fights. The fact he didn't puts him right to the back of the que and makes him irrelevant again. A win over a Vitor Belfort jacked up on TRT  in Brazil is quite possibly the best win Dan Henderson could get right now.

Belfort is the standout middleweight contender and should Henderson beat him he probably catapults himself into that one last title fight he desperately craves. A win for Belfort again does nothing for him realistically. He's expected to win. He has beat another unranked opponent and won't earn a title shot with a win. Matchmaking has been very curious with Belfort lately. It's almost as if they want him to lose as they have no idea what to do with him.

The rematch will headline UFC Fight Night 32 in Golania, Brazil on November 9th. No other contests have yet been announced.