Tonight at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Michelle Waterson and Felice Herrig will finally get the chance to meet in the centre of the octagon for their strawweight battle at UFC 229.
To some, this will be another showcase of the talented females in the strawweight division getting to show why women should be on the main card within the UFC, to others (like myself) this has been a fight 10 years in the making.
Back in 2007, an oxygen original tv show, similar in spirit to The Ultimate Fighter TV series had ten female fighters live together and train together with Muay Thai instructor – Master Toddy, in Las Vegas for six weeks to win a Muay Thai championship in Thailand.
Fight Girls cast picture
The group of women were then narrowed down to five via a three-round fight between the housemates, the winners got to go to Thailand and the losing fighter was eliminated from the house and the competition.
Felice Herrig and Michelle Waterson were two of the original ten women to compete to try to go over to Thailand and were mentored by Lisa “The black widow” King, who was the original shows winner back in 2006, when there was a one-off documentary with seven female fighters and female Muay Thai & MMA legend Gina Carano.
Gina Cararo, Lisa kKng and Master Toddy
Whilst Michelle lost her fight to get to go to Thailand, Felice won and set off to Thailand with the rest of the other four finalists, winning her fight in Thailand via TKO.
Felice went back to her kickboxing roots for a further two years before transitioning to MMA in 2009 where “The Lil Bulldog” had arrived.
Having competed for XFC, Bellator and Invicta, Felice was finally signed to The Ultimate Fighter season 20 in 2014.
Michelle transitioned to MMA in 2007 with help from Donald Cerrone at the time and “The Karate Hottie” competed at strawweight and atomweight in which she won the Invicta Atomweight Belt before being signed to the UFC in the strawweight division in 2015.
After Felice’s third win in a row against Justine Kish in 2017, she called out Michelle Waterson citing “she had already been offered the fight and accepted it, but it got taken away from her.”
With Felice Herrig being ranked #9 and Michelle Waterson being ranked #8 in the UFC fighter rankings and given both their shared history, this is one fight not to be missed.
Bellator 174 took place Friday, March 3 at Winstar World Casino in Thackerville, Okla. The main card aired on Spike TV.
Headlining the event was former Strikeforce champion, Marloes Coenen facing Julia Budd for the inaugural women’s featherweight title. It was, however, to be Julia Budd’s night after stopping Coenen in the fourth round to become the new featherweight champion.
Coenen then took the time to thank Scott Coker and Bellator before announcing her retirement from the sport.
“I have dreamt about this moment forever. When I was 21 and first started kickboxing, I dreamt about being a champion, and I didn’t make it, I lost.” Budd said. “So, this is my dream come true. The moment I signed with Bellator, I saw all the champions up there on the banners, and I said to myself that I want to be up there with them some day. Now it feels like everything has come together.”
“There’s only one message that I want to give out to all the fighters out there, and that is, please listen to your body. I am very proud of all the women in MMA, and I am very grateful for Bellator,” Coenen said. “This company picked me up when I was in a dark place, and Scott Coker has given me so many opportunities throughout my career. Bellator MMA will always be my home.”
Julia Budd (10-2) defeated Marloes Coenen (23-8) via TKO (punches) at 2:42 of round four to become the new inaugural women’s featherweight champion.
The upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter® will once again showcase mixed martial arts’ global expansion, as Polish strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and No. 1 contender Claudia Gadelha of Brazil lead a group of light heavyweight (men) and strawweight (female) hopefuls.
Thirty-two athletes from countries such as the Netherlands, Algeria, France, Norway, Spain, Canada, Brazil, England and the United States fight for one of 16 spots available in the premiere episode on Thursday, April 21 at 3am BST on BT Sport (repeated at 10pm BST later that same day).
There will be no shortage of intensity and drama with Jedrzejczyk (11-0, fighting out of Olsztyn, Poland) and Gadelha (13-1, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) as one of the most intense rivalries in all of mixed martial arts plays out on screen. The two fought in December 2014 with Jedrzejczyk narrowly edging out Gadelha before eventually going on to win the strawweight world title. There will be no love lost between the two as their epic feud plays out leading up to their highly anticipated rematch.
The show will feature 12 episodes, airing on BT Sport. Each episode’s winner will advance in the single-elimination tournament, leading to the season finale on July 8 in Las Vegas as part of International Fight Week. The finale will be headlined by this season’s coaches in a world title bout as Jedrzejczyk collides with Gadelha.
The Ultimate Fighter 23 competitors:
Strawweight Females
Light Heavyweight Men
Alyssa Krahn, 3-1, Age 28, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Abdel Medjedoub, 3-0, Age 30, Mila, Algeria
Amanda Cooper, 1-1, Age 24, Bath, Mich.
Andrew Sanchez, 7-2, Age 27, Shiloh, Ill.
Amy Montenegro, 7-2, Age 32, Forks, Wash.
Cory Hendricks, 3-0, Age 27, Lynden, Wash
.
Ashley Cummins, 3-3, Age 28, St. Louis, Mo.
Elias Urbina, 3-0, Age 22, Weslaco, Texas
Ashley Yoder, 4-1, Age 28, Indianapolis, Ind.
Eric Spicely, 8-0, Age 29, Stoughton, Mass.
Chelsea Bailey, 2-0, Age 23, Chewelah, Wash.
Jamelle Jones, 6-2, Age 28, Atlantic City, N.J.
Helen Harper, 4-1, Age 28, Farnborough, England
John Paul Elias, 3-0, Age 27, Fresno, Calif.
Irene Rivera, 6-2, Age 22, Barcelona, Spain
Josh Stansbury, 7-2, Age 31, East Liverpool, Ohio
Jamie Moyle, 3-1, Age 27, Las Vegas, Nev.
Kenneth Bergh, 3-0, Age 26, Oslo, Norway
JJ Aldrich, 2-1, Age 23, Aurora, Colo.
Khalil Rountree, 4-0, Age 26, Las Vegas, Nev.
Jodie Esquibel, 5-1, Age 29, Albuquerque, N.M.
Marcel Fortuna, 8-1, Age 30, Tubarao, Brazil
Kate Jackson, 7-2-1, Age 29, Lostwithiel, England
Muhammed DeReese, 5-0, Age 27, Titusville, Fla.
Kristi Lopez, 2-0, Age 33, Quartz Hill, Calif.
Myron Dennis, 12-4, Age 27, Oklahoma City, Okla.
Lanchana Green, 2-1, Age 26, Darlington, England
Norman Paraisy, 15-4-2, 1 NC, Age 30, Paris, France
Mellony Geugjes, 0-1, Age 23, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Phil Hawes, 3-0, Age 27, Little Ferry, N.J.
Tatiana Suarez, 3-0, Age 25, Fontana, Calif.
Trevor Carlson, 10-2, Age 27, Spring Creek, Nev.
All photo credits to:
UFC, Invicta, Joe Pic Photography, Sherdog, Cage Warriors,Bloody Mayhem, Epic Fighting, Google Images, Facebook, http://www.kristilopez.com
RAGED UK MMA 3 took place this Saturday, February 27th at MECA, Swindon which hosted a fight card of five amateur MMA bouts along with five professional MMA bouts. Although it was headlined by Swindon’s Phil Wells and Alex Brunnen, it also contained the addition of the first ever female bout on the card between Bristol’s L.J Adams and Kent’s Emma Delaney, both of whom are former Cage Warrior athletes themselves.
With the RAGED first title belt on the line, it was to be SVT’s Alex Brunnen’s night who won GOLD in the lightweight contest against Bristol’s Guy Lewis with a 36 second TKO.
Full Fight Results
Pro Fights
Alex Brunnen Def Guy Lewis Via TKO 36 seconds round 1
**New Raged UK Lightweight Title Belt Holder**
Kenton Kauppinen Def Brad Watchorn Via TKO (leg srikes) round 1
Phil Wells Def Shane Riley Via RNC 48 seconds round 1
L.J. Adams Def Emma Delaney Via TKO round 1
Krystian Gowik Def Jordan Patey Via KO round 2
Amateur Fights
Chris Bucksey Def Tom Enstone Via Majority Decision
Aaron Laleye Def Dean Hart Via Unanimous Decision
Mateusz Ginter Def Matt Thorn Via TKO (GnP) round 1
Lewis Hawkins Def Oliver Harry Campbell Via TKO (GnP) round 1
Dale Thompson Def Freddie Allen Via Unanimous Decision
*Thank you to Leigh Remedios for the information on the Fight Results
Swindon based promoter Gary Turland and Trainer Michael ‘Oz’ Osbourne will be bringing Professional and Amateur Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) back to the town of Swindon after the success of the first two RAGED UK events last year.
RAGED UK will be taking place this Saturday, February 27th at MECA, Swindon which will host a fight card of six amateur MMA bouts along with five professional MMA bouts. Although it will be headlined by Swindon’s Phil Wells and Alex Brunnen, I can guarantee that with the addition of the first ever female bout on the card between Bristol’s L.J Adams and Kent’s Emma Delaney, both of whom are former Cage Warrior athletes, it will be these two females who will be stealing the show.
Full Fight Card
Pro Fights
Guy Lewis (70.2) vs Alex Brunnen (70.2)
Brad Watchorn* vs Kenton Kauppinen (93.9)
Shane Riley (77.1) vs Phil Wells (77.1)
Emma Deleaney (63.3) vs L.J. Adams (63.3)
Jordan Patey* vs Krystian Gowik*
Amateur Fights
Chris Bucksey vs Tom Enstone
Aaron Laleye vs Dean Hart
Mark Ince vs Mateusz Ginter
Oliver Harry Campbell vs Lewis Hawkins
Freddie Allen vs Dale Thompson
Sam James vs Kyle Bayliss
*Will weigh-in on the day with the amateur fighters
Weigh-In Video
Face offs
Tickets are £20 and £40 VIP available from all fighters, The Forum, The Khyber; alternatively you can buy online at www.swindontickets.co.uk or click on their social media pages Facebook/Twitter.
Tickets are subject to a surplus charge on the door.
Helen ‘Hellraiser’ Harper will be setting her sights on the bright lights of Las Vegas on December 14th for season 23 of The Ultimate Fighter Trials.
Born and raised in Aldershot, Hampshire in the UK and having spent a few years living and competing in Phuket under Phuket Top Team, Helen is now firmly back where she started at home in Farnham, Surrey.
With her only loss coming by the way of controversial stoppage due to a Groin Strike against Strawweight UFC Athlete Cortney Casey, the 28-year-old has only been competing in mixed martial arts for four years and holds an impressive record of 4-1 inside the cage.
Not content with simply applying herself to the world of mixed martial arts, Helen has also competed in several Muay Thai events successfully including winning her pro kickboxing bout.
The pound for pound ranked #4 in UK & Ireland and #1 in Southeast Asia on Tapology does not take anything for granted in this forever evolving sport and has been working hard over the last few months by competing in many Gi and No Gi Competitions. So much so that Helen has picked up 7 Golds, 2 Silver and 1 Bronze, placing in every competition she has entered.
Having recently competed in a Muay Thai event at ‘The Road to Main Event’ on November 21st against Kat Holden, Helen took the fight on 2 weeks’ notice due to some prior pull-outs with her own schedule of fights in mixed martial arts. After three hard fought rounds, Helen was the one to walk away victorious with a decision win, although it was no easy feat.
“I’d had a few pull outs in a row and the only fight that I could have had was up in Sunderland, which would have meant I wouldn’t have had a corner. It was very frustrating. My coach at Shinkick (Jesse Saunders) told me he already had a few guys fighting on this show and they’d had a pull out – did I want to fight? Of course I said yes, that’s equivalent to asking a fat kid if they want cake…
“It was incredible! Kat is no walkover, she’s a seriously tough girl and as you said, it was by no means easy. I absolutely loved it though, and would do it again tomorrow if I could!”
Having decided to sharpen up her forever growing arsenal of tools in her tool box, Helen has been focusing more on becoming more specialised and dedicated to the whole of her MMA game. Having spent some time down at Legacy BJJ/Urban Kings under the tutelage of BAMMA‘s Head Match-Maker Jude Samuel, who was in Helen’s corner for her last MMA fight against Sophie Langsford where Helen picked up a win via decision over three hard fought rounds.
“I’m sharpening up my technique. I can brawl amongst the best of them but when it comes to technique I do struggle to keep things tight. My Muay Thai is the main thing I can see a big improvement in, and that’s thanks to the guys at Shinkick – especially Jesse and Rob. Strength and conditioning is done at Andy’s with the resident S&C coach, James Hardy. Wrestling is also at Andy’s, with Csaba who is an absolute beast – fantastic teacher and all round nice guy. I couldn’t ask for a better set of guys. Having spent a few months’ worth of training up at Jude’s in London, it is a fantastic gym, but I just couldn’t afford to keep travelling up there. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who does find themselves in the Kings Cross area though.”
Having recently been over to Phuket in Thailand to see her good friend and UFC flyweight athlete Ben Nguyen get married, which must of been amazing. Helen went over to AKA to train and then competed in a Muay Thai fight.
“I went over to witness Ben’s wedding, and had the opportunity to fight, so I grabbed it. Unfortunately, I also got very sick that week so it wasn’t my best fight but I made it to the end without throwing up so I was kind of happy about that!“
Now back in the UK, Helen is set to face one of her biggest goals to date – the TUF 23 Trials out in Las Vegas on December 14th. This is not the first time Helen has gone to try out for The Ultimate Fighter, back in April 2014 for season 20, Helen made it through to the final 20 athletes which is a great accomplishment in itself.
“I came home on Monday evening to 8 messages telling me about the trials. I wasn’t going to go, purely through lack of funds, but then Andy had a long chat with me and told me to get there any way I could. He reminded me that this is what I have been aiming for all this time so it would be stupid not to go.
“UFC is an organisation where anything could happen. Yes, I know the general expectation of me, but what they are looking for in a person for each series varies from show to show. The real bonus having been to Vegas before, is that there are a number of friendly faces I can count on to cheer me on!”
With costs from the UK to Las Vegas being expensive, especially on a massive UFC fight card week, yet alone near Christmas, Helen has decided to set up a ‘MAKEACHAMP‘ page to try to assist with the costs associated with getting to Las Vegas for the TUF 23 Trials.
“Andy encouraged me to get to the trials any way I can. I am a Teaching assistant who’s been living in my overdraft since I can remember. Realistically the only way, even though I absolutely hate asking people, is to ask for help. I have been absolutely overwhelmed by the support. The way I look at it is people are not only giving me their hard earned cash to achieve my own dream, which is incredible in itself, but they are believing in me. For that I am extremely lucky.”
Helen is also holding a grapplethon at the gym she trains at, Andy Roberts BJJ, on December 6th to also help raise funds for herself to get to the TUF 23 Trials.
“The plan is to grapple for 8 hours (10am-6pm). I was worried about not having enough people to turn up so I have been trying to book half hour slots – it’s not going that well so far. I hope I will get a few more booked this week! If anyone wants to come, it’s in Farnborough on Sunday and open to anyone!”
It’s day two of the IMMAF European Championships at Walsall in Birmingham, where Team UK are competing against several high level teams to gain the ultimate Gold.
After yesterdays great start, Team UK carried on the momentum and brought today’s score to a rather impressive 5-3 by the end of the first rounds. With Jack Shore and Hardeep Rai both competing twice today and winning both times also. So you could say 7-3 at the end of the day in total.
Here are the Unofficial results from today:
Toni Lampinen (Finland) def. Franklyn Rodrigues (Portugal) via Decision (Unanimous)
Sam Slater (Ireland) def. Jussi Pirttikangas (Finland) via unanimous decision
Jack Shore (UK) def. Jonny Martin (N. Ireland) via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) (Round 1 – 1:03)
This ‘incident’ happened on September 2nd 2015, just over one month on I thought I would re-cover the said ‘incident’ and put this ‘attempted’ awful crime that happened back out there for even more people to see.
Monique Bastos and her friend were on their way to jiu-jitsu training in Acailandia, Brazil when two men demanded their phones!
Much to their surprise, Bastos turned out to be an MMA fighter and wouldn’t let them get away with their actions.
“I’ve been through this a few times before, and it’s the second time I fought back,” she told MMAFighting.com.”There were two guys, and they were using knives, but I was able to use my jiu-jitsu and get my phone back. It’s a huge risk, but I did it to defend myself and my friends, so I used what I learned.”
In the video above, you can see how Bastos managed to capture the would-be thief and then subdued him by a figure four leg lock around his neck to stop him from moving until the authorities showed up. Now, that’s some serious strength!
UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey is set to make her next title defense against Bethe Correia in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The UFC 190 co-main is a light heavyweight rematch between PRIDE legends Mauricio Rua and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.
Before we get to the fights ahead we have to make sure they’re all on course to make weight., so onto the scales first it is.
Here are the full results:
Ronda Rousey (135 lbs) vs. Bethe Correia (134 lbs)
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (206 lbs) vs. Mauricio Rua (206 lbs)
Fernando Bruno (155 lbs) vs. Glaico Franca (156 lbs) – TUF Brazil 4 LightweightFinal
Dileno Lopes (135 lbs) vs. Reginaldo Vieira (135 lbs) – TUF Brazil 4 BantamweightFinal
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (240) lbs vs. Stefan Struve (265 lbs)
Soa Palelei (264 lbs) vs. Antonio Silva (265 lbs)
Jessica Aguilar (116 lbs) vs. Claudia Gadelha (116 lbs)
Preliminary Card
Neil Magny (171 lbs) vs. Demian Maia (171 lbs)
Rafael Cavalcante (205 lbs) vs. Patrick Cummins (206 lbs)
Warlley Alves (171 lbs) vs. Nordine Taleb (171 lbs)
Iuri Alcantara (136 lbs) vs. Leandro Issa (136 lbs)
Preliminary Card Fight Pass
Clint Hester (186.7 lbs*) vs. Vitor Miranda (186 lbs) – *Hester has 1 hour to lose .7 lbs
The upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter® will once again showcase mixed martial arts’ global expansion, as Polish strawweight champion 
Five Rounds with Emma 
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