Sin City Sentinel: Hughes’ Court Case Dismissed
Mike Sloan Jun 26, 2008
A battery and assault lawsuit filed against former UFC welterweight
champion Matt Hughes
(Pictures) in Clark County District
Court was dismissed by plaintiff Jed Leist on June 16 after the
parties settled out of court.
The case, which also cited intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment and negligence from Hughes, was filed on March 28, 2007, and scheduled to go before a jury trial on June 30.
According to court documents, the alleged altercation occurred "on
or about" October 13, 2006 inside the Mandalay Bay Resort and
Casino following UFC 64 "Unstoppable."
The suit contended Hughes and/or other unnamed defendants "grabbed and placed" Leist in a hold "as to cause injury and damage." Hughes' actions were "unwanted, not consented or authorized," by the plaintiff and inflicted "over his protests," stated the documents.
The suit also claimed Leist was both partially and permanently disabled from the alleged assault.
Multiple attempts to reach Hughes, Leist, and their representation by telephone and email were not answered.
An anonymous source in the fight community who was not an eyewitness to the incident told Sherdog.com that Leist approached Hughes and asked the wrestler to put him in a rear-naked choke for a photo.
According to the source, Hughes obliged Leist's requests for him to tighten the choke "for realism" and forced Leist to tap out. Hughes then walked away, though Leist appeared to be nearly choked unconscious.
Danzig-Guida Paired for UFC Fight Night
Las Vegas transplant and "The Ultimate Fighter 6" champion Mac Danzig (Pictures) will return to action at a UFC Fight Night planned for Sept. 17. Danzig is slated to face popular top-rated contender Clay Guida (Pictures) on the card, which is rumored to be taking place in Omaha, Neb. Also rumored on the card is a lightweight matchup featuring Gray Maynard (Pictures) and Matt Wiman (Pictures) -- both victorious in their recent Octagon efforts.
Maynard is currently nursing a broken hand sustained in his bout with Frankie Edgar at April 2's UFC Fight Night. The Xtreme Couture fighter has previously said he hoped to be ready to return to action by September.
Free MMA Again?
According to Daren Libonati, the president of the Thomas & Mack Center, June 20's "Free for All, A Night of Combat," was a resounding success. All 18,000-plus tickets to the free event were distributed throughout the valley, and while a few thousand fight fans didn't turn up to witness the first ever hybrid boxing-MMA card in Nevada's history, Libonati has his sights set on a second free fight card.
"We are looking at new dates," Libonati told Sherdog.com via text. "I'm thrilled about our first turnout, my partners are thrilled and I want to continue giving fans what they want."
Libonati stressed that talks of a second free fight event are in the beginning stages with a potential date and fight lineup undecided. However, Libonati is confident he'll be able to replicate June 20's efforts.
Coach Kelp to tackle promoting
Well-regarded boxing and MMA striking coach Skip Kelp has teamed up with Rock & Sock Promotions to host an MMA event at the Aquarius Casino Resort in steamy Laughlin, Nev. On June 28.
Kelp, who coaches the UNLV boxing squad and UFC middleweight Marvin Eastman (Pictures) among others, has helped stack the eight-fight card chock full with local talent from the various gyms across Las Vegas. The event begins at 8 p.m. and will feature lanky featherweight JR Sims (Pictures) against Rage in The Cage regular JT Wells.
Kelp, one of the head trainers at John Lewis (Pictures)' J-Sect Academy, has been planning his promotional debut for some time and is hoping to assemble more MMA cards throughout the remainder of 2008.
Quick Hits
• International Fight League heavyweight champion Roy Nelson (Pictures) will be out of action for a few more months due to a broken left thumb. No word on how long it will be before "Big Country" will be able to fully train. In the meantime, the IFL is struggling to find its financial footing in a flooding market. …
• Popular Nevadan Joey Gilbert, one of the original stars of the boxing reality television series "The Contender," has been working hard with UFC welterweight contender Diego Sanchez (Pictures) on his pugilistic endeavors. Gilbert's work ethic and drills paid dividends as Sanchez looked sensational in victory against Luigi Fioravanti (Pictures) on Spike TV's "The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale" last Sunday. Following the event, Gilbert told to Sherdog.com that he is thinking about taking up MMA professionally and said that he might make his pro debut in a year, maybe year and a half. …
• In a hilarious turn of events, comedic actor Kevin James, of "King of Queens" fame, had to be removed from his ringside seats during last Friday's "Free for All, A Night of Combat" event at the Thomas & Mack. It wasn't because he was unruly or inebriated; James and his entourage mistakenly sat in someone else's seats. When six young patrons showed up to their rightful spots, there was confusion and a few ushers swooped in and asked James and company to move along. James, a close friend to Randy Couture (Pictures) and his wife Kim, who made her pro debut on the card, got up and walked around for several minutes with a stunned look on his face. No reports on whether the actor pulled the, "Don't you know who I am?!" card. …
• Popular UFC lightweight and "The Ultimate Fighter 6" alumnus Troy Mandaloniz (Pictures) told Sherdog.com that the bulging disc in his back is starting to feel better and he's been able to do some very light training. There's still no definitive answer as to when "Rude Boy" will be able to come back to fighting, but the Hawaiian-turned-Las Vegan is hopeful that he'll be able to fight sometime in the fall. …
The case, which also cited intentional infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment and negligence from Hughes, was filed on March 28, 2007, and scheduled to go before a jury trial on June 30.
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The suit contended Hughes and/or other unnamed defendants "grabbed and placed" Leist in a hold "as to cause injury and damage." Hughes' actions were "unwanted, not consented or authorized," by the plaintiff and inflicted "over his protests," stated the documents.
Prior to the dismissal, Leist was seeking damages in excess of
$10,000 per each charge plus attorney's fees and additional
expenses due to "severe humiliation, mental anguish and emotional
distress."
The suit also claimed Leist was both partially and permanently disabled from the alleged assault.
Multiple attempts to reach Hughes, Leist, and their representation by telephone and email were not answered.
An anonymous source in the fight community who was not an eyewitness to the incident told Sherdog.com that Leist approached Hughes and asked the wrestler to put him in a rear-naked choke for a photo.
According to the source, Hughes obliged Leist's requests for him to tighten the choke "for realism" and forced Leist to tap out. Hughes then walked away, though Leist appeared to be nearly choked unconscious.
Danzig-Guida Paired for UFC Fight Night
Las Vegas transplant and "The Ultimate Fighter 6" champion Mac Danzig (Pictures) will return to action at a UFC Fight Night planned for Sept. 17. Danzig is slated to face popular top-rated contender Clay Guida (Pictures) on the card, which is rumored to be taking place in Omaha, Neb. Also rumored on the card is a lightweight matchup featuring Gray Maynard (Pictures) and Matt Wiman (Pictures) -- both victorious in their recent Octagon efforts.
Maynard is currently nursing a broken hand sustained in his bout with Frankie Edgar at April 2's UFC Fight Night. The Xtreme Couture fighter has previously said he hoped to be ready to return to action by September.
Free MMA Again?
According to Daren Libonati, the president of the Thomas & Mack Center, June 20's "Free for All, A Night of Combat," was a resounding success. All 18,000-plus tickets to the free event were distributed throughout the valley, and while a few thousand fight fans didn't turn up to witness the first ever hybrid boxing-MMA card in Nevada's history, Libonati has his sights set on a second free fight card.
"We are looking at new dates," Libonati told Sherdog.com via text. "I'm thrilled about our first turnout, my partners are thrilled and I want to continue giving fans what they want."
Libonati stressed that talks of a second free fight event are in the beginning stages with a potential date and fight lineup undecided. However, Libonati is confident he'll be able to replicate June 20's efforts.
Coach Kelp to tackle promoting
Well-regarded boxing and MMA striking coach Skip Kelp has teamed up with Rock & Sock Promotions to host an MMA event at the Aquarius Casino Resort in steamy Laughlin, Nev. On June 28.
Kelp, who coaches the UNLV boxing squad and UFC middleweight Marvin Eastman (Pictures) among others, has helped stack the eight-fight card chock full with local talent from the various gyms across Las Vegas. The event begins at 8 p.m. and will feature lanky featherweight JR Sims (Pictures) against Rage in The Cage regular JT Wells.
Kelp, one of the head trainers at John Lewis (Pictures)' J-Sect Academy, has been planning his promotional debut for some time and is hoping to assemble more MMA cards throughout the remainder of 2008.
Quick Hits
• International Fight League heavyweight champion Roy Nelson (Pictures) will be out of action for a few more months due to a broken left thumb. No word on how long it will be before "Big Country" will be able to fully train. In the meantime, the IFL is struggling to find its financial footing in a flooding market. …
• Popular Nevadan Joey Gilbert, one of the original stars of the boxing reality television series "The Contender," has been working hard with UFC welterweight contender Diego Sanchez (Pictures) on his pugilistic endeavors. Gilbert's work ethic and drills paid dividends as Sanchez looked sensational in victory against Luigi Fioravanti (Pictures) on Spike TV's "The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale" last Sunday. Following the event, Gilbert told to Sherdog.com that he is thinking about taking up MMA professionally and said that he might make his pro debut in a year, maybe year and a half. …
• In a hilarious turn of events, comedic actor Kevin James, of "King of Queens" fame, had to be removed from his ringside seats during last Friday's "Free for All, A Night of Combat" event at the Thomas & Mack. It wasn't because he was unruly or inebriated; James and his entourage mistakenly sat in someone else's seats. When six young patrons showed up to their rightful spots, there was confusion and a few ushers swooped in and asked James and company to move along. James, a close friend to Randy Couture (Pictures) and his wife Kim, who made her pro debut on the card, got up and walked around for several minutes with a stunned look on his face. No reports on whether the actor pulled the, "Don't you know who I am?!" card. …
• Popular UFC lightweight and "The Ultimate Fighter 6" alumnus Troy Mandaloniz (Pictures) told Sherdog.com that the bulging disc in his back is starting to feel better and he's been able to do some very light training. There's still no definitive answer as to when "Rude Boy" will be able to come back to fighting, but the Hawaiian-turned-Las Vegan is hopeful that he'll be able to fight sometime in the fall. …
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