After the news submerged that Bobby Green was out of his UFC fight with Jorge Masvidal on April 4th, after sustaining a Torn Quad, he is now on the road to recovery after having surgery for the injury, Friday just gone (January 23rd).
Below is a picture, but be warned the image is very graphic and not for those with a delicate nature.
Loving the smily face that has been drawn on Bobby’s leg 🙂
Wishing Bobby all the best in his road to recovery.
Fairfax, Virginia at the Patriot Center is where it is set to go down. The date Saturday April 4th. UFC Fight Night 63 will be in town and two of the top women’s Bantamweight will throw down for the night. Liz Carmouche [9-5] will take on Lauren Murphy [8-1] in what is set to be one of this year’s great fight. Both women have a fairly similar record on paper. Carmouche’s stats according to sherdog are 67% in KO/TKO, 22% in submissions and 11% in her only decision fight. Laurens stats according to sherdog are 75% KO/TKO, 0% in submissions and 25% in decisions for 2 of her fights.[The 0% in submissions is that Lauren chosses her method of a KO/TKO finish in the first 6 of her fights].
What makes this an interesting fight for fans around the world, is the striking ability both women posess on paper and what we have seen them do in the cage. Also both women are very highly skilled on the ground if they choose for the fight to go this way, (we saw this when Carmouche fought Ronda Rousey and Murphy when she fought Sara McMann), every which way you look at this fight, for me, it is without a shadow of a doubt already a ‘fight of the night’ candidate. These women mean business and will leave it all in the cage, no matter what.
Photo Credit: UFC
On August 16th, Lauren Murphy will make her long-awaited UFC debut where she will take on former UFC title contender Sara McMann in the women’s Bantamweight division.
McMann [7-1, 1-1 UFC] is an Olympic Silver Medalist who will be looking to seek to put herself back into title contention again after her last outing with Ronda Rousey ended in a 66 second defeat.
Murphy, who is 8-0 in her MMA career, with six of those wins coming by T/KO victories and two via decision wins. Murphy’s first, five fights never made it into the third round and were all T/KO wins. On December 7th 2013, Murphy won the first ever inaugural Bantamweight Belt for promotion InvictaFC after defeating Miriam Nakamoto in the fourth round via TKO, before relinquishing the title to sign with the UFC.
I managed to catch up with Lauren for a quick chat about how the UFC offer came about, her new home in Arizona, new training home at The MMALAB and when we will get to see ‘The Lauren Murphy Documentary’ amongst others.
What made you say ‘right the time is now for UFC’, after all you are the Invicta Bantamweight Champion – or was it a case of the UFC came to you with an offer [the offer you had been waiting for] after finally noticing that you should be in the UFC?
I had an offer previously with the UFC, to take a short notice fight last year. I decided not to pursue it at that time, because I was not ready. I also did not pursue the Ultimate Fighter, because at that time, I wanted more experience before getting a fight in the UFC. Therefore, there were a couple of times when there might have been an opportunity to go to the UFC, but the time was not right. Then this last year, Invicta had a long time between shows and we were not really sure what was going on for a long time, so we started looking into our options for the UFC- much the same way several other champs in Invicta have. When Sara needed an opponent, I think I was the only one willing and healthy that made sense, so Sean Shelby called Shannon and off I went.
You have just moved to Arizona. How are you finding it having your family complete and with you since Joe is now retired from the Air Force. Is it great to be together all the time (so to speak) whilst just celebrating your first year of marriage and having your son Max with you?
It IS great! It really is nice to wake up next to my husband everyday. That is why I married him! There are some things we have to adjust to, of course. When I would do camps in Houston by myself, I learned how to handle bad days and good days alone. Now I have someone who loves me right there with me to share that with, and I think that is an adjustment for Joe. I also have a little more to worry about. In Houston, I could go home, make my own food, get in bed, watch something on Netflix and call it a day. Now, I have to make sure Max is ready for the next day, get dinner ready for everyone, make sure the laundry is done. I have a much bigger house to keep clean. Before, I was just renting a tiny room. All the same stuff people deal with when they have a job and a family. Before, when I was on my own, I could just worry about myself. I could afford to be very selfish that way, and now I cannot. Joe does a TON around the house while I train, but it is still an adjustment for all of us to some extent.
You moved training camps to The MMA LAB in Arizona, was this to start preparing for the fight that has just been announced or was it for other reasons?
No, I was not even in the UFC when we decided to move. My long time coach in Houston decided to move his family to Virginia to be closer to his extended family, and when he left Texas, I decided to look for a new gym. I just figured it was a good time to go to a big gym with a big camp. There are pros and cons to every situation, but I came to the Lab to see if I would like it and just fell in love with it. Therefore, when Joe was released from the Air Force, we decided to set up shop here. We wanted a place that had a strong coach, a good gi program for jiu jitsu, and had a family-like and family-friendly atmosphere. The Lab has all those things, plus a kick ass team in a great location. We are very happy here.
With the news breaking that you are now signed to the UFC and also on the same day that you would not have to wait long for your debut, as you will be fighting UFC ranked number 4 Sara McMann on August 16th in Maine; At that point with it now being ‘public’ knowledge, is it becoming more real to you, that you have now made it to the UFC?
Ha! Most days I wake up and am in awe of where I am at, but I felt that way before I signed to the UFC. If I start really thinking about it, my whole life has been pretty surreal. The UFC is just one more loop on the crazy roller coaster of my life 😉
‘Lauren Murphy fans’ who know you, know that whoever your opponent is, you will go into the octagon and fight 100%. What were your initial thoughts when you knew it was Sara McMann that you will be facing as your first UFC opponent?
I am really glad the UFC gave me a tough fight to begin with. I like being the underdog. I am so honoured to fight one of the best women in the world! I also know I can beat Sara. I do not know if I will. But I know I can if I work hard and go out there and perform to the best of my ability.
What are you expecting from your first UFC debut – in terms of being on the biggest stage for MMA, pre-conceptions if any or will it be business as usual?
Someone told me to remember, “It’s just another cage.” I like that. There might be a few more cameras, a few more lights, a few more people in the audience, but there is only one opponent, and she is human just like me.
How do you think you will ‘deal’ will the added side of the business that comes with being in the UFC – doing the media days and open public displays on fight week? Would you like to just concentrate on what you are here for and that is to get in the octagon and show why you are in the UFC?
The media days, interviews, and what not is just a part of the job. It is a challenge. We are at a level now where these things are done, so what is the point of liking it or disliking it? I go in to it like anything else, to do my best, and whether I like it or not, is actually not even really relevant to me ha ha ha.
When can we see ‘The Lauren Murphy Documentary’ as I for one am so looking forward to seeing your journey so far on DVD?
I think it is now planning on being released about a week before my fight? I have just signed all the gloves we are shipping out and those will come to donors soon. The release date is not set in stone, and I do not think it needs to be at this point. I have talked to the film’s producer and we agreed it should probably be released before the 16th of August, so it can generate some interest leading up to the fight.
The film editor experienced a sudden death in his family, and he needed some time to process that a little. I cannot imagine having something like that happen and then trying to work. My heart hurts for him 😦
Thank you for your time, it is always a pleasure, lastly anyone you would like to thank?
I always thank my husband for being so awesome 🙂 and I want to thank my manager as well, Chuck Wichert. He has been amazing and he always takes great care of all his fighters. Also to the team at the Lab, thanks for working with me so much. And to all my fans and family and friends that have supported me through all this craziness, thanks to you 🙂 It means everything to me.
You can watch Lauren Murphy in her debut UFC appearance on August 16th UFC Fight Night: Bader vs Saint Preux, which takes place at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor, Maine. It is also available free to view on the FOX Sports 1 network or BT Sports in the UK.
If you want to get better acquainted with Lauren Murphy, you can now see her last three fights on the UFC Fight Pass network under the Invicta FC library, starting from Invicta 5 where she competed against Kaitlyn Young. What better way to start your free 7 day trial than now!
If you missed my two-part in-depth interview with Lauren I covered last year you can read them here:
Introducing-the-inspiring-lauren-murphy-a-true-fighter-in-every-sense-of-the-word/part 1
Introducing-the-inspiring-lauren-murphy/part 2
You can follow Lauren on Twitter: @LaurenMurphyMMA
On Facebook, Official Athlete page: Lauren Murphy MMA
Facebook: The Lauren Murphy Documentary page
As of late, Twitter has become increasingly popular within athletes of the MMA community, well not just the MMA community, as this is the field I am interested in, I guess this is just what I notice!
When, Gilbert Melendez sent out the following tweet, which opens up into his Instagram account with a picture of the UFC Belt, Anthony Pettis sent his reply [which is when it turns interesting]. Benson Henderson then sent his reply, which is the whole reason this article was wrote!
The whole series of tweets are here for you all to read:
You can watch Gilbert Melendez and Anthony Pettis ‘Throwdown’ on December 6th at The Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Tonight is the time for Matt Brown and Robbie Lawler to go head to head, to battle it out to see who will become the next person to face Johny Hendricks for the Welterweight Title.
Last night or early hours this morning here in the UK it was the all important weigh-ins, but Matt Brown found himself in somewhat of an unusual situation!
UFConFOX12 is at San Jose in California, not only did Brown come in over the scales at 1.5lbs also Juliana Lima, who is a new addition to the new female Strawweight division came in over the scales 2 lbs [1.5lbs officially after two hours]. The California State Athletic Commission, for reasons unknown would not let Brown cut anymore weight [according to reports by www.mmajunkie.com].
No penalty was handed out to either fighter for the weigh-in ‘issue’ and therefore still remain eligible for the UFC’s post-fight bonus awards.
For me though it was Bobby Green that stole the weigh-in limelight, the ever professional was all respect for oponnent Josh Thomson [see photos] before switching it on for the close up ‘Face Off’ picture.
On the other hand, I could not make out Joanna Jedrzejczyk, but Dana White did have to step in a few times on a few other ‘Face Offs’ though!
On that note, here is the whole of the card and how all of the twenty-four athletes weighed in individually.
MAIN CARD BT SPORT UK
Matt Brown 172.5 lbs* vs. Robbie Lawler 171 lbs
Anthony Johnson 204.5 lbs vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira 205.5 lbs
Clay Guida 145) lbs vs. Dennis Bermudez 146 lbs
Josh Thomson 155 lbs vs. Bobby Green 155.5 lbs
PRELIMS BT SPORT UK
Daron Cruickshank 155.5 lbs vs. Jorge Masvidal 155.5 lbs
Kyle Kingsbury 204.5 lbs vs. Patrick Cummins 206 lbs
Hernani Perpetuo 171 lbs vs. Tim Means 170.5 lbs
Mike De La Torre 146 lbs vs. Brian Ortega 145.5 lbs
FIGHT PASS PRELIMS ONLY
Akbarh Arreola 155.5 lbs vs. Tiago “Trator” dos Santos 155 lbs
Andreas Stahl 171 lbs vs. Gilbert Burns 170 lbs
Juliana Lima 116.5 lbs ** vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk 115 lbs
Steven Siler 146 lbs vs. Noad Lahat 145 lbs
* Brown will not be fined for missing weight
** Lima was 117 pounds on her first attempt. Will not be fined for missing weight
Tonight we will get to see UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman defend his title against former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida. UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey will try to retain her title against Alexis Davis in the co-main event.
Before any of this can, happen last night it was time for the all important weigh-in’s for UFC 175 in Las Vegas. Check out the results below and how to watch.
MAIN CARD BT SPORTS 2AM UK/PPV 7PM P.T/10PM E.T
MW Chris Weidman [C] 185lb
![Chris Weidman [C]](https://fiveroundswithemma.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/weidman.jpg)
BW Ronda Rousey [C] 135lb
![Ronda Rousey [C]](https://fiveroundswithemma.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/ronda-rousey.jpg)
HW Stefan Struve 251.5lb
HW Matt Mitrione 254lb
MW Uriah Hall 185lb v Thiago Santos 185lb
BW Marcus Brimage 135.5lb
BW Russell Doane 136lb
PRELIM CARD 1AM BT SPORTS UK AND LIVE ON FOX SPORTS 5PM PT/8PM E.T
BW Urijah Faber 136lb
BW Alex Caceres 135lb
WW Kenny Robertson 171lb v Ildemar Alcantara 170lb
MW Chirs Camozzi 185lb v Bruno Santos 185lb
BW George Roop 135lb v Rob Font 135lb
FIGHT PASS PRELIMS 12 MIDNIGHT UK/ 4PM P.T/ 7PM E.T
MW Luke Zachrich 185lb v Guilherme Vasconcelos 185lb
MW Kevin Casey 185lb v Buba Bush 185lb
The cast for this season’s ‘The Ultimate Fighter 20’ has been revealed, and eight new names were revealed.
The eight new additions to the cast include Heather Jo Clark (6-4), Aisling Daly (14-5), Lisa Ellis (15-8), Angela Hill (1-0), Justine Kish (4-0), Angela Magana (11-6), Randa Markos (4-1) and Jessica Penne (11-2 MMA).
They will join the eight fighters previously announced Joanne Calderwood (8-0), Alex Chambers (4-1), Carla Esparza (9-2), Felice Herrig (9-5), Bec Rawlings (5-3), Emily Peters Kagan (3-1), Rose Namajunas (2-1) and Tecia Torres (4-0).
UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis and top contender Gilbert Melendez will be coaches. Filming for this season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter 20’ has just started and will air in Setember on TV.
The UFC has signed unbeaten Invicta FC Bantamweight Champion Lauren Murphy to a UFC contract, not only that Murphy will not have to wait long for her UFC debut as she will be facing former UFC title contender Sara McMann on August 16th for UFC Fight Night in Bangor, Maine.
Sara is the number 7 ranked Bantamweight in the world, with her only loss coming from current UFC champion Ronda Rousey. Lauren Murphy is ranked number 8 and is 8-0 in her MMA career so far. Lauren has not fought since December of 2013, after winning the Invicta FC Bantamweight title by defeating Miriam Nakamoto in the fourth round via TKO (Nakamoto was unable to continue due to a knee injury sustained in the third round, but did come out for the fourth round before her knee giving out completely).
There will undoubtabley be questions as to where this leaves Invicta FC with another one of their athletes leaving the promotion and who now will get the chance to compete for the now vacant Bantamweight Title.
Tickets for UFC Fight Night, which is headlined by the light heavyweight bout between Ryan Bader and Ovince Saint Preux, and which also features Tim Boetsch vs. Brad Tavares, are on sale now.
This original piece took place on June 2nd 2014 after the May 31st fight.
Andy Ogle (9-5) vs Maximo Blanco (10-6-1) was a fight in which was billed as a ‘must-win’ fight for both fighters with all to lose; at the weigh-ins, we saw a lot of ‘alleged’ ‘trash’ talk by Andy Ogle to Maximo Blanco but was this one-sided? The only people there were, of course, the fighters themselves, their management and UFC representatives, I doubt we will ever know the true story, but this is what we do know for sure.
On fight night when the cage door closed there were only three men in the octagon; Andy Ogle, Maximo Blanco and Referee Wolf Menninger.
Wolf Menninger gave his usual instructions ‘fighter ready Maximo’ ‘Fighter ready Andy’’ the camera is on Andy Ogle and he nods. He then gives a thumbs up in the direction of Maximo Blanco (Wolf Menninger is against the octagon fence to Ogle’s left so the thumbs up are not for him), Wolf Menninger calls ‘fight’, what happens next is what is open for debate.
Ogle moves in to near the centre of the octagon with his left hand raised to touch gloves with Blanco but Blanco is already coming out with all guns blazing, running straight for the centre of the octagon and landed a flying kick to Ogle’s mouth.
Ogle went down and Blanco then proceeded to pounce on him to unleash some brutal ground and pound for the 20 odd seconds or so but Ogle weathered the storm, got back to his feet albeit briefly but he recovered from the initial flying kick that started this opening round and continued to take Maximo the full three rounds.
Okay so first things first, that was an awesome Flying Kick from Maximo and congratulations on his win. Secondly props to Andy for recovering from the initial onslaught and surviving the round. His manager, Brian Butler, commented earlier today when I posted my sentiments up on my Facebook page, he was short and to the point, “As maxis manager, I say If your gonna “respect” your opponent then do it all the way through. The kid talked a lot and showed no respect early on so maxi blasted him. Well done. I think it was obvious maxi was on attack mode when he ran across the cage… If he couldn’t see that coming then he is blind…”
‘Fighting is all about winning’. Although touching of the gloves is a sign of respect, you have plenty of time for that before the fight such as ‘weigh-ins, when the ref faces you off and explains the rules again and more importantly after the fight’ when the bell sounds it is down to business it is a FIGHT.
Tonight Demetrious Johnson takes on Ali Bagautinov for the UFC flyweight championship in Vancouver, Canada at UFC 174.
Also on the card is Tyron Woodley who will face Canada’s own Rory MacDonald in a welterweight fight.
Before all the main action can take place, the all important weigh-ins took place last night, here are the results:
Main Card
Demetrious Johnson 125 lbs vs Ali Bagautinov 124.5 lbs
Rory MacDonald 171 lbs vs Tyron Woodley 170.5 lbs
Ryan Bader 205 lbs vs Rafael Cavalcante 204.5 lbs
Andrei Arlovski 249.5 lbs vs Brendan Schaub 238 lbs
Ryan Jimmo 204.5 lbs vs Ovince St. Preux 205.5 lbs
Prelims
Daniel Sarafian 171 lbs vs Kiichi Kunomoto 170 lbs
Elizabeth Phillips 135 lbs vs Valerie Letourneau 134.5 lbs
Yves Jabouin 136 lbs vs Mike Easton 135 lbs
Kajan Johnson 155 lbs vs Tae Hyun Bang 156 lbs
Fight Pass Prelims Only
Roland Delorme 135 lbs vs Michinori Tanaka 135 lbs
Jason Saggo 155.5 lbs vs Josh Shockley 155.5 lbs
Five Rounds with Emma 
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