Interview

Tomorrows UFC 149 has gone through massive changes from top to bottom and Canadian welterweight Chris Clements was one of the many replacement fighters. After Thiago Alves got injured he stepped in to face Siyar Bahadurzada on the UFC 149 main card. You would be seeing that exciting bout though as Bahadurzada would get injured and be replaced by Matt Riddle to complete to overhaul.

Fight fans in the Mid-Atlantic Region are very familiar with Lightweight Jeremy Carper. They know him as a hard-working, dedicated, West Virginia fighting machine. The proficiency of Jeremy’s stand up game has garnered him the nickname “Cro-Carp”, a play off the nickname of Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic.

Earlier this month 12 of the 16 TUF Live fighters made their official UFC debuts at the season’s finale. The four that didn’t get their shot under the big lights were unable to fight on the card due to injuries sustained in the last few weeks of the season. One of the unlucky ones was Mike Rio.

With only four bouts in his professional MMA career, Sergio Pettis is scheduled to fight for the third time this year on June 15th when he squares off against Tom McKenna.

It’s not often that we get to hear true sentiment from athletes. Original thoughts are not always what “the business” wants it’s participants to put out there. How many times have we heard a Shaquille O’Neal interview where all he would rattle off was that he “wanted to play within himself”, he just wanted to “come out and play his game” and just wanted to “help the team”? Most pro athletes keep their heads down chasing that fame and fortune, sometimes to their own detriment.

Imagine being only 50 years old and a Corporate Executive in the Casino industry? Would you coast along the rest of your life and be perfectly happy knowing you hold a great position and the title of Vice President? Would you take the risk of leaving your job in order to start your own fight promotion in hopes that a sport you love, catches on in the US?

Joe Schilling has been in the fight game since he was 17 years old. His devastating knockout of highly touted Muay Thai fighter Kaoklai Kaennorsing catapulted him into stardom in the Muay Thai scene. Schilling is hoping his rise to fame can help thrust the sport into the American spotlight, with the help of Lion Fight Promotions. Looking to avenge a highly controversial loss to Marcus Simon which you can see here, Schilling hopes to settle the score with Simon, once and for all.

This Saturday, Invicta Fighting Championships will hold its debut show in Kansas City, KS. The card features accomplished women, such as, former 135-pound Strikeforce champion, Marloes Coenen, as well as, former title challenger Liz Carmouche.