5. Official Denials
For the purposes of the point, I’ll admit to watching professional wrestling as a youth. (A small, socially awkward youth, with suspected psychological afflictions. Nothing’s changed.) If you were Hulk Hogan or Bret Hart, the last guy you wanted to see officiating your match was Earl Hebner, a dirty, double-crossing snake of a referee who blew calls, ignored fouls, and -- in at least one instance -- had his evil twin enlisted by Ted DiBiase to rig a match in his favor. (Rigging a pro wrestling bout was a little too rich in irony for 1980s audiences.)
2009 has been a record year for Hebner’s spiritual offspring, who have watched fighters foul, poke eyes, grab fences, and launch air-to-groin strikes with military precision. Properly and duly bloodied, a fighter can then look forward to a judge declaring the comatose man in the opposite corner the winner.
There are many fine officials working for commissions. There are also several in dire need of remedial training. ... Read More
The Ultimate Fighting Championship launched a needed go-home push for UFC 104 “Machida vs. Shogun” this Saturday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles -- its first show in California in more than two years. ... Read More
The ultimate fighter at 25 has a body with a good temperament for training. He can take repeated abuse and repair himself. He can fight four times a year -- or five, or seven -- if he wishes. ... Read More
The Dream promotion crowned new lightweight and featherweight champions this week, capping an Oct. 6 fight card from Yokohama that drew passionate crowd response and encouraging television ratings. ... Read More
Junie Allen Browning, a UFC veteran known for his outrageous behavior on season eight of “The Ultimate Fighter,” was arrested Tuesday in Henderson, Nev., according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. ... Read More
The UFC heads to Texas tonight for its hundredth-something
broadcast. And since there’s all the chance in the world the audience
in the arena will be armed, it had better be good.
Already, local news has gotten cranky about their presence, with
Dallas Morning News columnist Tim Cowlishaw getting his diapers
in a sailor's knot over it. Cowlishaw passed on a ringside seat
offered by UFC brass in order to watch a college football game on
television. If only some kind of recording device were available. ... Read More
Efrain Escudero will make his first appearance inside the Octagon since winning the lightweight final at “The Ultimate Fighter 8” Live Finale when he challenges Cole Miller at UFC 103 “Franklin vs. Belfort” on Sept. 19 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. ... Read More
Holly Madison, the genetically and surgically blessed star of E! television’s “Girls Next Door” series and one-time cuddle partner of Hugh Hefner, has circulated a press release announcing her peripheral participation during Saturday’s UFC 100 card: Madison will appear briefly as a ring card girl.
If you are the type of person to be excited by this news, you must live a wonderfully uncomplicated life.
While Madison rehearses this crucial task, it’s worth nothing that virtually none of the original eight fighters -- 10 if you count the alternates -- from 1993’s UFC 1 will be in attendance. ... Read More
Drive and ambition comprise the will to win, and they are prerequisites for success in a fight. Efrain Escudero, the lightweight winner on season eight of “The Ultimate Fighter,” demonstrated those traits ... Read More
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