Jackson is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Rashad Evans, who will now challenge Shogun Rua for the UFC Light Heavyweight belt once Rua heals up. Ring rust and lack of takedown defense proved to be his downfall in the fight. Jackson, who signed a new six fight contract this year, will look to get back to his winning ways as he takes on a man who will likely stand and trade with him.

“Rogerio” Nogueira, twin brother of Antonio “Rodrigo” Nogueira, is coming off a controversial split decision victory over Jason Brilz. By the end of the third round, Brilz looked to be on his way to earning the upset that night, however the judges saw it differently. Lil’ Nog will look to prove to the fans that he is a much better fighter than what was seen against Brilz. A fight with Jackson would be the ultimate test to what he can do on his feet against a true standup fighter. Although, if he feels he should, Nogueira would have no problem taking the fight to the ground, where he will have a huge advantage.

It is still uncertain whether the bout will indeed take place, but if so, it will likely be at UFC 119 or 120.

Just over a year ago Liddell faced Shogun Rua. After losing the fight via first round TKO, UFC President Dana White made it clear that he hoped his good friend would finally hang up the gloves for good. But, despite the disapproval of many, Liddell wanted to keep fighting. Knowing a comeback wouldn’t be easy, he made some serious life changes and took his training more serious than ever. As fight week drew closer, Liddell looked to be in the best shape of his career and he was more motivated knowing he would have another chance to fight his long time foe Tito Ortiz. However, Ortiz was forced to pull out of the fight due to surgery and was replaced by Franklin as a coach on TUF 11 and as Liddell’s opponent. The fight between Liddell and Franklin proved to be a much more practical matchup because of Liddell’s two previous wins over Ortiz and the fact that both fighters would be looking for a win to show that they aren’t quite finished with their respective careers.

After going 1-4 in his last five fights, three of those losses being knockouts, Liddell was in need of a decisive win to prove all the doubters wrong. Up until the end of the fight, Liddell looked to be a much different fighter than we have seen recently. He came out aggressive and utilized kicks and takedowns, which had not been seen much throughout his career. One of the body kicks even broke Franklin’s arm when he blocked it. And even though it looked as if he would have a shot at winning, it wasn’t the short right of Franklin but the multiple previous knockouts he has suffered that lost him the fight. After a fighter gets knocked out once the chin begins to weaken, making every time that much easier.

Although no fighter wants to end a career with that kind of finish, Liddell went out swinging. He truly dedicated himself to this fight and did everything he could to come well prepared. After the event, Dana White publicly stated that he guarantees we will not see Liddell fight in the UFC ever again. His career may be over, but his legacy will go on forever. He helped make the sport what it is today and holds some of the most exciting finishes in the sport. We will never forget Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell.

Dana White recently stated possibly that the winner of Rich Franklin vs. Chuck Liddell could fight Forrest Griffin later on this year. This would be a big deal for both fighters, seeing that Forrest has a current win over Mauricio “shogun” Rua and who ever won that fight could possibly have the next title shot after Rashad Evans.

These are all heavily known fighters in the LHW division and will all be heavy sellers or almost dream matchups for the UFC. Good for both the fans and the man.

The Fans seem to be entertained by the idea of Franklin vs. Griffin fight because he likes to use angles and would not eat leg kicks from Forrest like his opponent Chuck did against Keith Jardine. It would be relevant and would be a three round war for both fighters who share defeat by the spider.

Then there is Rampage Jackson who recently said on his twitter account that his manager was in talks with the UFC and that he “wants Forrest!” Even though Dana White had mentioned a Rampage vs. Machida fight would be next, maybe Rampage wants revenge first.

There is still several good fights left in the upper and lower top ten on the light heavyweight division in the UFC and Joe Silva will have some fun picking match ups. The 205 lbs. Division has long been stacked, we are in for a jam packed second half of 2010.

In a recent interview, White told MMAWeekly.com that Shogun has had knee surgery and will be out for the next five weeks. Apparently, the injury was sustained in the rematch with Lyoto Machida, but the surgery has fixed everything. Once cleared to return, Shogun will look to get back to his camp and begin training again. Luckily for Evans, the time off will give him some valuable time to put together a game plan to beat the champion and get the belt around his waist once again.

This will be the third knee surgery Rua has had now in the last couple of years. After his UFC debut against Forrest Griffin at UFC 76 Rua needed surgery for a ruptured ACL in his left knee. Before his UFC 85 scheduled fight with Chuck Liddell, Rua was forced to withdraw after again rupturing his ACL in that left knee requiring surgery. Rua knee appears to be a weak point on his body and with now his third procedure you have to wonder what affect will this one have on him.

So now fast forward to about a year ago, Evans and Rampage signed on to coach The Ultimate Fighter season 10. Throughout the whole season the two coaches spent more time arguing and yelling at each other than actual training for their aspiring fighters. Following the season the two coaches were as usual supposed to fight each other, but Rashad v. Rampage was called off because Rampage decided to act in a movie, had a fallout with Zuffa and retire from fighting. Things eventually got figured out with Zuffa, he finished the movie and now this epic fight is back on.

The Keys to victory
Rashad does posses good knockout power but has to use his wrestling and get the fight on the ground where he has the advantage, while staying clear of being knocked out. Rampage having knockout power in both hands must keep the fight standing and look for the KO, using his wrestling skills and good takedown defense to keep the fight there. With a title shot, bragging rites and their pride all on the line this fight should be one insanely crazy brawl and a must see.

Siyar Bahadurzada is an Afghan mixed martial artist who currently resides and trains at the Golden Glory gym in Holland. He is not a new fighter at all, just one who is not well known here in the US, Yet.  But ask anyone familiar with MMA in Afghanistan or Holland and they will probably know who I am talking about. He is the 2 time Light Heavy Weight Shooto Champion and currently holds the title. Siyar is only 26 but he has already managed to pack more knowledge and experience in his life than many men twice or even three times his age.  He knows several languages, holds an advanced degree and is a world class champion.  A fast paced life for a fast paced sport. 

Q:  Tell a little bit about yourself and your background, you grew up in Afghanistan and later moved to the Netherlands, which is a big change. How did you adjust to the new lifestyle in the Netherlands?  What was the hardest thing to get used to?  You were born in 1984 which means you never lived in a country at peace before, what was that change like?

My name is Siyar Bahadurzada and I was born in the war torn Afghanistan.  I lived in Afghanistan for 15 years without knowing how it would feel to live in peace. I just did not know how peace felt.  After moving to Holland in October 1999, I got acquainted with peace.  It was different for me as a person who has lived his entire life in war.  I did not feel the excitement that I used to feel everyday in the war.  I was safe, but bored.  My body and mind were used to being under pressure and now, that pressure was gone, and my body and mind reacted strange to it.  I was very bored and I saw the possibility of ending up somewhere where I did not want to go.  So I started setting goals for myself in order to keep myself busy so I do not do anything, which I will regret later.  I started to learn the Dutch language, which is a very difficult language, but since I was determined, I managed to speak Dutch well, in less than 6 months.  This was the hardest period of my life… coming to a totally new culture with a very difficult language. But since we were raised open minded in Afghanistan, the Dutch culture was not like a shock to me.  I expected it to be the way it was.  I adjusted really fast to the Dutch culture because I went to school in Holland and the person that I am today, I have the best of both cultures. 

Laughs.

Q: Is there an Afghan community where you live?  Have you been back to Afghanistan to visit?

I do not live in an Afghan community, but about 50.000 Afghans live here in Holland and most of them know me, because I’m a big name among the Afghans.  I am the only MMA world champion they have ever had in the history of Afghanistan and they give me a lot of respect and recognition for that.  Especially last year, when I was back in Afghanistan after 10 years.  They treated me like a hero and I was all over Afghan TV.  The supermarkets/shopkeepers in Kabul would not even take my money for buying something, because they said I was their champion and they were all excited to see me.  That was great!  Not because I did not have to pay, I paid them anyhow because I know they live in a bad situation, but the recognition for what I did.  I fought for my war torn country and full of pride Afghans since day one.  It was great to see that they appreciate my sacrifices for my country and for my people.

Q: How many languages do you speak?  Which ones?

I speak Dari and Pashto (the two official languages of Afghanistan), Farsi (similar to Dari), Urdu (Pakistani language), Hindi (Hindustani language sounds similar with Urdu, but you write it differently), Dutch, German, English and a little bit of Spanish.

Q: When did you first become interested in fighting? How did you fall into shooto?

After learning the Dutch language, I was looking for another goal in my life to keep busy and keep my body and mind challenged.  So I decided to do Martial Arts.  But growing up in Afghanistan among people who love all kinds of martial arts, I heard a lot from people saying wrestlers are better than boxers and boxers are better than wrestlers and all that kind of stuff.  So I wanted to practice something that nobody can say: “I’m a better fighter”, no wrestlers and no boxers either.  So I went to the local gym to look for some kind of martial arts and I met Martijn de Jong at the shooto gym in my city, my current trainer.  Since the first day, I was in love with this sport.  And this sport was all I was looking for.  It was dangerous, extreme, and totally complete.  It was over for boxers and wrestlers in my mind. (Laughing)  But my real addiction with the sport started when I fought my first fight.  I felt the same excitement in the ring, as I felt in Afghanistan, during my entire life in the war and I was so happy and felt like a fish in water again.  This was the start of my career as a mixed martial artist and since then, I am determined to become a big champion in MMA.  A fighter, who will be remembered for a long time.  A fighter who stands for exciting fights, big heart and iron mentality.

Q: When and why did you decide to fight professionally and what keeps you going?

I never thought about fighting professionally, I just wanted to keep feeling that excitement that my body and mind needed and I was manhandling my opponents in my amateur career.  After 9 amateur fights I went undefeated to my pro career and kept knocking people out.  Fighting feels like my lifestyle that I was living in Afghanistan and it is a part of me.  I can’t stop fighting… ever!

Q: You are not well known in the US yet, but you actually have an extensive and international mixed martial arts career.  What was your hardest win/opponent? Favorite fight/win?

I am not well known in US, but I will fight hard to win the heart of the fans in the US. My hardest fight has to come yet and my favorite win so far has been my Shooto LHW title defense in Brazil with Leandro “batata” Silva.

Q: What made you want to fight in the US?  Where will you be training at here? Who are you signed with and how many fights do you have coming up? Who are your training partners?

US is the place for MMA right now.  MMA has become mainstream and it has grown dramatically the recent years in US.  Besides, there are hundreds of thousands of Afghans in US and they have been waiting for a long time to see me fight in the US.  When I’m in the US I train in Orange County at the Reign training center with King Mo, Mayhem, Babalu, Fabricio Werdum, Mark Munozand many other good and talented fighters.  But I also train in Holland with other Golden Glory fighters.  I just signed a four fight deal with Strikeforce and I am looking forward to fighting in Strikeforce shows. 

Q: What techniques are you working on improving now?

I work on everything, wrestling, muay thai, boxing, grappling.  MMA is a complete sport you have to be well rounded to be successful in MMA.

Q: Who would you like to be matched up with to fight?

I will fight anyone Strikeforce thinks will make a great fight match up with me.

Q: Who are/were people that inspire you?

Kazushi Sakuraba

Q: What are the last three songs you downloaded?

“Big Booty Judy” (Money Montana), “My demeanor” (Money Montana), “oh let’s do it” (Waka Flocka Flame).

Q: What traits in people do you like? Dislike?

I like people with a wild character.  People who live by the day and are carefree.  Life is too short to be too serious… be a little bit serious, but not too serious.  What I dislike about people is if they judge others by nationality, race, or background.  We live in 2010 and we have to judge people by their character and personality.

Q: Worst injury?

Both elbows.  Needed surgery!

Q: Why are so many people in Brazil named Silva?

 Lack of creativity?  Laughs

Q: How did your family react to your decision to be a professional fighter?

I kept my fighting career a secret until I became famous in Holland.  One day my parents were reading the newspaper and they saw my picture in it.  They came to me and asked me if it was me, not because they didn’t read my name there, but because they did not believe I was doing this dangerous sport and keeping it secret.  And too bad, I could not deny it was me. The picture was as big as half the newspaper.

When I had fights in Holland, I would pack my stuff and give it a day earlier to my coach because if I packed my stuff the day of the fight, my parents would find out I’m going to fight again.  I have always been fighting with the fear in my heart not to get hit.  Because my parents would find out I was fighting.  So I went out there and finished my opponents mostly in the first round.  And it has become a habit now.  I fight hard, aggressive, and very high pace.

Q: What is the funniest thing someone has said or done to you in the ring that people didn’t see/hear?

The funniest thing was when I fought a team mate and sparring partner of Melvin Manhoef, named Rody Troost. He is an A class Muay Thai fighter and when we fought I mounted him in the second round and started to GnP him.  After some hard punches to his face he yelled at me like: “AUWWW NOT SO HARD, NOT SO HARD”.  That was by far the funniest thing I have ever heard in the ring with a fighter.  His face looked like a mess that night.  After the fight I went to his locker room to thank him for the fight.  I did not even know it was him sitting there.  I asked where he was and he got mad and thought I was joking because his face looked cosmetically challenged.

Q: How do you feel right before a fight?

I feel very confident before the fight.  I just wait for the bell to ring and test my skills!  I want to feel that adrenaline rush and that surviving mode.  The adrenaline rush attracts me the most about fighting.  So I’m very excited before the fight. 

Q: What is the hardest food for you to give up when cutting weight?

Rice.  I hate cutting weight!  But it has to be done, so I handle it professionally.  

Q: How did you get your nickname “SiyarTheGreat”?  What does it stand for?

As much of a trouble kid that I was in Afghanistan, I am a laid back and relaxed person right now.  When I went to US a couple of months ago, Ryan Parsons the main trainer and coach of King Mo and Mayhem gave me the nickname “SiyarTheGreat”.  And the full nickname would be “Siyar the great, the most interesting man in the world.” I have no idea why he gave me this nickname.  It took a while till I got used to it, but now I like it actually. I’m “SiyarTheGreat” now.

Ryan Parsons: “It’s quite simple. Siyar is a Renaissance Man. He speaks 7 1/2 languages, he’s very intelligent and a loyal guy. He’s a great guy.”

Q: Any other nicknames besides “Afghan Killa”? What is that one about?

My first nickname “the killer” I got it when I was like 9 or 10 years old from my Grandfather in Afghanistan.  Since I can remember I was around 5 years old and I used to take it on older boys who fought with my older brother and would beat the hell out of them.  I grew up beating the older kids in the neighborhood for not listening to me while playing on the streets in Kabul.  I made the rules as a kid and they had to play it according to my rules or we would fight.  In other words, I was the boss among the kids.  One day 3 of them boys gathered and turned against me. They didn’t want to play with me and wanted to play a different game.  So I insisted to play my game and we started fighting. That was the day that I even surprised myself.  I was like 10 years old and I fought 3 kids around 13 or 14 years old and I was killing them.  I have this other side in me that when I get angry, I just become powerful and my emotions take the best out of me.

My Grandfather saw me from far fighting with these kids and ran to me to save me from these older boys, but by the time he was there, all those boys were crying to leave them alone.  Since that day my Grandfather called me “the killer”.  It is a nickname that means a lot to me, because it comes from the only man on earth that I looked up to.  As a man, as a mentor and as grandfather. (RIP grandpa, I love you and I miss you every time I fight!)

Q: What do you think gives you an advantage over other MMA fighters as a shooto practitioner?

I started with Shooto and Shooto produces warriors and champions like Anderson Silva, BJ Penn, KID Yamamoto, Gomi, Sakurai, Rumina Sato and many, many more. I have been practicing MMA since day one and I am a complete and well rounded fighter.

Q: What are you looking forward to most in moving to the US?

To fight for the fans and party with Mayhem again! (Laughs)

Q: What is your ultimate goal as a fighter and as a person?

Be the baddest 170 lbs fighter alive.  As a person I am a renaissance man and I will continue being that!

Q: Most useless class you took in school?

 Mathematics (laughs) because I have talent for languages and Mathematics is a subject that squeezes your brain! Not cool!

Q: Best advice given to you as a fighter by another fighter or coach?

Shogun: Don’t put pressure on yourself to win.  Put pressure on your self to do your best.

Q: Do you have any degrees after high school? If yes what in?

I have a Bachelor degree in International Business and Languages.

Q: Who do you call when you have a bad day?

Nobody.  I run my emotions, not the other way around.

Q: What is your dream vacation place?

Island BORA BORA.

Q: Would you like to say something to the fans?

I would like to thank the MMA fans for supporting the sport and especially the fans who support me when I’m fighting.  I am really looking forward to fighting in the U.S. and putting on some exciting fights.  To the fans who do not know me yet, watch my fights and I will entertain you.  For updates regarding my upcoming fights come follow me on twitter @SiyarTheGreat and on Facebook “Siyar Bahadurzada”.

Thank you to Siyar for being open with us and doing this interview for mmavalor.com.  We hope to see you soon so we can dissect everything you say and do.  When it comes to MMA that is.

Randy may want to step back and take a look around because there may be another opponent for him. Days after winning the light heavyweight belt Mauricio “Shogun “Rua (19-4) was interviewed by Sherdog and said that he would like to fight Randy Couture. With the fan base for each of these fighters it would not surprise anyone if Dana White and Joe Silva make this happen. We all know that when a fighter says he wants to fight someone Dana usually makes it happen at some point. Randy has defeated one top contender in Brandon “the truth” Vera (11-5) by unanimous decision and fellow hall of famer Mark “the hammer” Coleman (16-10) by submission in the second round since moving down to the light heavyweight division. At 46 years old Randy is the only fighter to win the light heavyweight and heavyweight belts on separate occasions. He is a world class wrestler with great control skills. Rua is a 28 year old Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai master with a ton of power.

What true fan would not want to see this fight happen?

.. Paul Daley doesn’t like Josh Koscheck laying on him for 15 minute and not standing there for him to kit him. As the third round closed, Koscheck clearly going to win Daley could be seen yelling into the ear of Koscheck. When the fight ended and Koscheck with getting up and watching to the corner Daley threw a left that landed to the face of Koscheck. Hope that cheap shot was worth it though because he won’t be throwing anymore in the UFC.

.. Josh Koscheck is not going to be winning any Oscars anytime soon with that acting but sure is trying. After the apparent illegal knee by Daley the replay clearly showed the knee hit nothing but hair. Koscheck played it up nicely and was still playing the part well into the post fight press conference.

.. Kimbo Slice is a much improved Mixed Martial Artist BUT when you started at zero going to 5 is an improvement. The 1-0 Matt Mitrione schooled the street brawler in every aspect and should the obvious game plan that other will follow from here out. Slices legs a weak and so is his leg checks, chop him down and the power is gone. Once the power is gone he’s ripe for the takedown and eventually the TKO. Apprently Dana White noticed this too and stated this was Kimbo’s last fight for the UFC.

.. Tom Lawlor is an extremely funny guy with his weigh-in entrances, impersonations and personality. That will win you a lot of fans and get you on TV but cannot win you a fight. Worry more about winning the fight and less about being Hulk Hogan or Dan Severn.

.. Alan Belcher looked very good against Patrick Cote in the first PPV fight. He slammed a fighter who hasn’t fought in 18 months on his face and choked him out. Perfectly legal and not his problem, but calling out Anderson Silva? Nothing wrong with dreaming I guess.

For the compete UFC 113 fight results check out the results page.

The co-main event is a Welterweight #1 contenders match between Josh Koscheck and the heavy handed Paul Daley for the chance to coach opposite of Georges St. Pierre during TUF 12 plus fight for the belt at the season conclusion. Also on the main card is Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson as he continues his transformation from street brawler to actual MMA fighter when he takes on fellow brawler on TUF 10 alum Matt Mitrione. The main card is rounded out with a lightweight fight between Sam Stout and Jeremy Stephens and a Middleweight clash between Patrick Cote and Alan Belcher. I must also mention that the undercard has some solid name on there too with Marcus Davis, Tom Lawlor and Jason MacDonald all fighting, here are my picks:

Make sure to leave you’re UFC 113 predictions in the comments section

Main event:
205 lbs.: Lyoto Machida over Mauricio Rua

Main card (Televised):
170 lbs.: Josh Koscheck over Paul Daley
265 lbs.: Kevin Ferguson over Matt Mitrione
155 lbs.: Sam Stout over Jeremy Stephens
185 lbs.: Patrick Cote over Alan Belcher

Under card (May not be broadcast):
170 lbs.: Marcus Davis over Jonathan Goulet
265 lbs.: Joey Beltran over Tim Hague
170 lbs.: Johny Hendricks over T.J. Grant
205 lbs.: Tom Lawlor over Joe Doerksen
170 lbs.: Yoshiyuki Yoshida over Mike Guymon
185 lbs.: Jason MacDonald over John Salter

Since are last update there was two events, UFC 112 and Strikeforce: Nashville and a total of 5 title fights.

 Movers and Shakers

Frank Mir’s slow decent out of the top 5 was finally completed and Junior Dos Santos has replaced him in the 5th position at Heavyweight.

The lose to King Mo Lawal Knocked Gegard Mousasi from the #3 spot right out of the top five and moved Lawal into the rankings for the very first time. With Mousasi’s downfall both Rashad Evans and Rampage Jackson each move up one spot.

The biggest drop was by far Dan Henderson who was ranked #2 at Middleweight but after his lose to Jake Shields fell completely off the list. With the win Shields moved up from 4th to the 2nd spot and Nate Marquardtmoved up from 5th to 4th. With a spot open Vitor Belfort was able to grab the 5th spot on the list putting him on the list for the first time also.

At the Welterweight division the fighters stayed the same but Nick Diaz and Thiago Alves switched spots for no real reason as neither fought recently.

Despite losing his belt at UFC 112 BJ Pennkept the #1 spot at Lightweight and the new UFC Lightweight Champ Frankie Edgar went from not on the list to the #2 spot. Gilbert Melendez finally makes the list at the #4 spot after beating Shinya Aokiwill lost ground moving from #2 to the #5. Both Eddie Alvarez and Ben Henderson were the victims of the two new fighters in the top five and fell off the list.   

Surprises

Dan Henderson falling from #2 totally off the list caught my off guard a little considering Shinya Aoki was in the same #2 spot and remained on the list at #5.

The fact that Nick Diaz moved down a spot when both him and Thiago Alves didn’t fight makes me think Diaz was punished for his part in the Brawl?

Coming Up

WEC 48 - Title fights between Jose Aldo vs. Urijah Faber at 145lbs. and Ben Henderson vs. Donald Cerrone at 155lbs. will some affect on the rankings for next month.

UFC 113 – The 205 lbs title fight between Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio Rua will have a major change at the top of the Light Heavyweight Division. Another fight on the card; Paul Daley vs. Josh Koscheck
is likely going to shake up the Welterweight ranks plus it will determine who fight Georges St. Pierre next.