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Thursday MMA: A TV Viewer’s Guide
By: Jeff Sherwood
Thursday
4:00 a.m. ET MAVTV: King of the Cage: Greatest KO's 26
The best collection of knock outs ever caught on camera and featuring some of today's biggest stars in MMA.
4:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Tonight
Preview Benson Henderson vs Nate Diaz, the world's best lightweight mixed martial artists will face off for the title.
4:30 a.m. ET Sportsnet West: UFC Central
Hosted by "Showdown" Joe Ferraro. UFC highlights and news.
4:30 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Ultimate Insider
Gustafsson; Lauzon; Rogan; Arianny Alexander Gustafsson's San Diego training; Joe Lauzon's signature moves; Arianny Celeste poses.
5:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 11: Fight the Perfect Fight Joey Rivera and Jon Manley face-off to stay in the competition; the tension builds between Michal Hill and Mike Ricci before they enter the octagon; the last two match-ups before the finale are revealed.
6:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Presents Benson Henderson: Rising Up
Benson Henderson's mother, brother, girlfriend, coach and Benson, himself, reveal the motivations and desires that drive him.
7:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Ultimate Insider
Alexander Gustafsson's San Diego training; Joe Lauzon's signature moves; Arianny Celeste poses.
7:30 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Tonight
Preview Benson Henderson vs Nate Diaz, the world's best lightweight mixed martial artists will face off for the title.
8:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC 154: Georges St. Pierre vs. Carlos Condit - Prelims
John Makdessi vs. Sam Stout; Rodrigo Damm vs. Antonio Carvalho; Chad Griggs vs. Cyrille Diabate; Alessio Sakara vs. Patrick Cote. From Bell Centre in Montreal.
10:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Road to the Octagon 2012
Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz Inside the training camps of six UFC fighters as they get ready for UFC: Henderson vs. Diaz.
4:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Tonight
Preview Benson Henderson vs Nate Diaz, the world's best lightweight mixed martial artists will face off for the title.
4:30 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Ultimate Insider
Alexander Gustafsson's San Diego training; Joe Lauzon's signature moves; Arianny Celeste poses.
5:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Reloaded
UFC 144: Frankie Edgar vs. Benson Henderson Relive the action from UFC 144 Frankie Edgar vs. Benson Henderson at Saitama Super Arena in Tokyo.
8:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Tonight
Preview Benson Henderson vs Nate Diaz, the world's best lightweight mixed martial artists will face off for the title.
8:30 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Ultimate Insider
Alexander Gustafsson's San Diego training; Joe Lauzon's signature moves; Arianny Celeste poses.
9:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: Best of PRIDE Fighting Championship
The Brazilian Top Team The best of the greatest submission team in Pride.
10:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Road to the Octagon 2012
Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz Inside the training camps of six UFC fighters as they get ready for UFC: Henderson vs. Diaz.
11:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Unleashed
Frankie Edgar vs. Benson Henderson Lightweight title fight between Frankie Edgar and Benson Henderson at UFC 144; featherweight face-off between Dustin Poirier and Max Holloway at UFC 143; UFC 142's battle between Vitor Belfort and Anthony Johnson.
12:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 11: Fight the Perfect Fight Joey Rivera and Jon Manley face-off to stay in the competition; the tension builds between Michal Hill and Mike Ricci before they enter the octagon; the last two match-ups before the finale are revealed. Read more -
Tuesday MMA: A TV Viewer’s Guide
By: Jeff Sherwood
Tuesday
6:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC 154: Georges St. Pierre vs. Carlos Condit - Prelims
John Makdessi vs. Sam Stout; Rodrigo Damm vs. Antonio Carvalho; Chad Griggs vs. Cyrille Diabate; Alessio Sakara vs. Patrick Cote. From Bell Centre in Montreal.
2:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Reloaded
UFC 139: Mauricio Rua vs. Dan Henderson; Cung Le makes his UFC debut against Wanderlei Silva.
7:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: Best of PRIDE Fighting Championship
Greatest Japanese Fighters The best of Pride's Japanese hometown stars.
8:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 11: Fight the Perfect Fight Joey Rivera and Jon Manley face-off to stay in the competition; the tension builds between Michal Hill and Mike Ricci before they enter the octagon; the last two match-ups before the finale are revealed.
9:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: Road to the Octagon 2012
Benson Henderson vs. Nate Diaz
10:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Tonight
Benson Henderson vs Nate Diaz, the world's best lightweight mixed martial artists will face off for the title.
10:30 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Ultimate Insider
EPISODE: 86
10:30 p.m. ET Sportsnet ONE: UFC Central
Hosted by "Showdown" Joe Ferraro. UFC highlights and news.
11:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC: Rich Franklin vs. Cung Le
Rich Franklin vs. Cung Le; Stanislav Nedkov vs. Thiago Silva & more. From Macau, China.
11:30 p.m. ET Sportsnet Ontario: UFC Central
Hosted by "Showdown" Joe Ferraro. UFC highlights and news.
11:30 p.m. ET Sportsnet East: UFC Central
Hosted by "Showdown" Joe Ferraro. UFC highlights and news. Read more -
Friday MMA: A TV Viewer’s Guide
By: Jeff Sherwood
Friday
3:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC Reloaded
UFC Rio Jose Aldo defends his Featherweight title against undefeated Chad Mendes.
10:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: UFC 154: St-Pierre vs. Condit - Prelims
John Makdessi vs. Sam Stout; Rodrigo Damm vs. Antonio Carvalho; Chad Griggs vs. Cyrille Diabate; Alessio Sakara vs. Patrick Cote. From Bell Centre in Montreal.
9:00 a.m. ET MTV2: Bellator Fighting Championships 81
Marcin Held vs. Rich Clementi; Dave Jansen vs. Ricardo Tirloni; Marlon Sandro vs. Dustin Neace.
12:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC: Miller vs. Diaz
Jim Miller vs. Nate Diaz; Pat Barry vs. Lavar Johnson; Josh Koscheck vs. Johnny Hendricks. From New Jersey.
2:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: UFC 154: St-Pierre vs. Condit - Prelims
John Makdessi vs. Sam Stout; Rodrigo Damm vs. Antonio Carvalho; Chad Griggs vs. Cyrille Diabate; Alessio Sakara vs. Patrick Cote. From Bell Centre in Montreal.
4:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 1: Bring It! Shane Carwin and Roy Nelson coach opposing teams of fighters competing for a six-figure UFC contract.
6:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 2: What We Do Sixteen victorious welterweights move into the house; Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin pick their squads; the first two welterweights face off.
7:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 3: We Have Control One fighter engages in noisy late night activities, creating enemies on both teams; Coach Carwin announces his first match-up.
8:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 4: Can't Fix Stupid Dana treats the fighters to a special outing away from the house; Roy uses a bizarre method to pick the next matchup; one fighter's weight problem puts his future in jeopardy; two more welterweights face off.
8:00 p.m. ET MTV2: Bellator's Road to the Championships Season 7
Highlights from the tournaments this season; analysis on the finals.
9:00 p.m. ET MAVTV: Inside MMA
EPISODE: 267 Benson Henderson; Kenny Rice; Bas Rutten; Ron Kruck talks with Dana White.
9:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 5: Unleash the Beast Julian Lane lashes out after being disrespected by another fighter; Team Nelson wants more coaching from Roy; Mike Ricci once again finds himself at odds with Nic Herron-Webb; Coach Carwin chooses two welterweights to fight.
10:00 p.m. ET AXS: The Score Fighting Series 7
Jordan Mein vs. Forrest Petz; from Hamilton, Ontario.
10:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 6: One Mission Team Nelson has doubts about Roy's leadership, Carwin puts his squad through an unusual training session; a prank at the house ignites heated smack talk between fighters; two more welterweights face off in the fifth preliminary fight.
10:00 p.m. ET The Score: The Score Fighting Series
The Score Fighting Series (SFS) features fighters from North America and beyond with a focus on exciting match-ups and developing the next generation of great fighters. Tune in for non-stop action from events across the country.
11:00 p.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 7: Summer Camp Coach Roy once again has a fighter choose his own opponent; Forrest Griffin drops in for training; the feud between Hill and Secor reaches its boiling point; Dana White expresses his outrage after the 6th preliminary fight.
12:00 a.m. ET FuelTV: The Ultimate Fighter
Season 16 Episode 8: Rock 'Em, Sock 'Em Trash talk causes a scuffle; Dana visits the house to give the fighters an eye-opening lecture; two more welterweights face off in the 7th preliminary fight. Read more -
UFC 120 Postmortem: Bisping Accelerates, Hardy Parked
By: Jake Rossen
Michael Bisping file photo: Sherdog.com
The most brutal part of Saturday’s UFC broadcast on Spike? Unless your television had a TiVo filter, you were in for nearly an hour of commercials during a three-hour timeslot. Thirty-three percent of the time, your brain was being beaten into oatmeal and under duress from advertisements. I got two nosebleeds just from “Blue Mountain State” spots alone.
The filler -- that pesky actual ring footage -- was ostensibly an ad for UK fight talent, but not everyone wanted to follow the script: Mike Pyle had a terrific night as the foreign interloper, stopping the momentum of 14-0 John Hathaway and pulling off the neat trick of choking and punching someone at the same time. (Hint: it takes all four limbs to pull off.) Following Pyle’s embarrassing loss to Andrei Arlovski in “Universal Soldier 4,” this is a nice return to form.
Hathaway is a burgeoning British talent, and since an undefeated record is virtually impossible to pull off, he should probably enjoy the depressurized environment. Intentionally or not, his presence was one of three distinct stages in foreign-favored talent: the middle man, Dan Hardy, got his first stern test against Georges St. Pierre but didn’t get obliterated until he met Carlos Condit, who put him to sleep; the highest-level -- and highest-paid -- platform belongs to Michael Bisping, who did what most expected in defeating a gassed and undisciplined Yoshihiro Akiyama.
That the UK scene hasn’t grown to the point where we can see a waning fighter is both good and bad: good in that no one likes to see a favorite get beat up, bad in that the country might still be playing catch-up when it comes to skills across the board. (Condit, the night’s biggest American villain, isn’t known as a KO artist). Hathaway needs more wrestling time; Hardy needs to get opponents thinking about takedowns; Bisping needs a big win over a top-ten middleweight to prove his actions have caught up with his words.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a strong urge to purchase tickets for “Saw 3-D” on a night that won’t conflict with the Spike Scream Awards or purchasing a new flavor of Mountain Dew. Or a TiVo. Read more
