Dana White goes to ESPN in the second installment of his UFC 118 video blog:
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Dana White confirms winner of Florian/ Maynard gets title shot
UFC president Dana White announced at the UFC 118 press conference that the winner of Kenny Florian vs. Gray Maynard would get the next lightweight title shot.
"Gray Maynard beats Kenny Florian, he deserves a title shot, no doubt about it," White said at the press conference.
White confirmed later in the conference that either fighter would get a title shot with a win.
With UFC 118 also featuring a lightweight title bout between champion Frankie Edgar and BJ Penn, we will know what the next lightweight title fight will be by the end of the night.
If Maynard wins, there will be an interesting back story no matter who the champion is. Maynard handed Edgar his only career loss back at UFC Fight Night 13 in 2008, and was coached by Penn during his winning run on "The Ultimate Fighter 5."
Florian's last loss came at the hands of Penn at UFC 101, and has yet to face Edgar.
Watch the UFC 118 Press Conference at 3:00 PM EST
Join TapouTVTC.com right here at 3:00 PM EST today for the UFC 118 press conference. B.J. Penn, Frankie Edgar, Randy Couture, James Toney, Kenny Florian, Gray Maynard and Dana White will be on hand to take questions at the Great Hall in Faneuil Hall in Boston. You can also watch the press conference live here.
White:
"I didn't think I would make it, but then I ended up doing it." ~ on booking a James Toney fight
"[Tony]'s got more knockouts than Randy has fights."
"Lots of guys in boxing have talked smack about the UFC, one guy has come in and signed the contract."
"Gray Maynard beats Kenny Florian, he deserves a title shot, no doubt about it."
"Toronto. I want to get to Toronto as fast as possible." ~ on what city White wants the UFC in next.
"I would never do anything to embarrass myself. I know a lot more than you think I know."
"It's going to happen, it's just a matter of when." ~ on getting the UFC in New York
"We're going to be announcing some things in the next month or so that will take things to another level."
Penn:
"I feel like I'm going to blow a lot of people away on Saturday night, and they're going to be surprised who BJ Penn is."
"I love to be the contender."
"At certain times I've lived up to the expectations, and at certain times I haven't."
Edgar:
"The confidence that I gained from the last fight has really pushed me in the right direction."
Couture:
"This sport is going to continue to explode around the world whether I win or lose this fight."
"I don't do any talking, it all happens in the cage. That's all that matters."
Toney:
"I'm a different kind of animal. I adapt to my atmosphere."
"Bunch of cowards in there." ~ responding to White saying boxing has a lot of problems
Florian:
"I don't feel any added pressure fighting in my home town. This is a dream."
"This is the best point in my career to face a guy like Gray Maynard."
Maynard:
"I've got a couple more pounds to cut, so I'm going to be pretty hungry tomorrow."
White:
"I didn't think I would make it, but then I ended up doing it." ~ on booking a James Toney fight
"[Tony]'s got more knockouts than Randy has fights."
"Lots of guys in boxing have talked smack about the UFC, one guy has come in and signed the contract."
"Gray Maynard beats Kenny Florian, he deserves a title shot, no doubt about it."
"Toronto. I want to get to Toronto as fast as possible." ~ on what city White wants the UFC in next.
"I would never do anything to embarrass myself. I know a lot more than you think I know."
"It's going to happen, it's just a matter of when." ~ on getting the UFC in New York
"We're going to be announcing some things in the next month or so that will take things to another level."
Penn:
"I feel like I'm going to blow a lot of people away on Saturday night, and they're going to be surprised who BJ Penn is."
"I love to be the contender."
"At certain times I've lived up to the expectations, and at certain times I haven't."
Edgar:
"The confidence that I gained from the last fight has really pushed me in the right direction."
Couture:
"This sport is going to continue to explode around the world whether I win or lose this fight."
"I don't do any talking, it all happens in the cage. That's all that matters."
Toney:
"I'm a different kind of animal. I adapt to my atmosphere."
"Bunch of cowards in there." ~ responding to White saying boxing has a lot of problems
Florian:
"I don't feel any added pressure fighting in my home town. This is a dream."
"This is the best point in my career to face a guy like Gray Maynard."
Maynard:
"I've got a couple more pounds to cut, so I'm going to be pretty hungry tomorrow."
Randy Couture on ESPN's "SportsCenter"
UFC Hall-of-Famer Randy Couture stops by ESPN's "SportsCenter" to talk about his upcoming UFC 118 bout against James Toney:
Duffee out, Yvel in againt Madsen at UFC 121
Todd Duffee (6-1, 1-1 UFC) has been forced to withdraw from his UFC 121 bout against Jon Madsen (6-0, 3-0 UFC) with a lingering injury, MMAjunkie.com reported.
Gilbert Yvel (36-15-1, 0-2 UFC) will step in to replace Duffee.
The bout was originally reported by the Las Vegas Sun.
Since losing to Brendan Schaub in the quarterfinals of "The Ultimate Fighter 10," Madsen has gone undefeated in the UFC, notching three straight decision victories.
Yvel, meanwhile, is still searching for his first UFC win after coming up short in his first two attempts. A loss against Madsen could spell the end of his tenure with the organization.
UFC 121 will take place on Oct. 23 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA.
Madsen last three fights:
Win (Unanimous Decision): Karlos Vemola - UFC 116 (07/03/10)
Win (Unanimous Decision): Mostapha Al-turk - UFC 112 (04/10/10)
Win (Split Decision): Justin Wren - The Ultimate Finale 10 (12/05/09)
Yvel last three fights:
Loss (Unanimous Decision): Ben Rothwell - UFC 115 (06/12/10)
Loss (TKO): Junior dos Santos - UFC 108 (01/02/10)
Win (KO): Pedro Rizzo - Ultimate Chaos: Lashley vs. Sapp (06/27/09)
Gilbert Yvel (36-15-1, 0-2 UFC) will step in to replace Duffee.
The bout was originally reported by the Las Vegas Sun.
Since losing to Brendan Schaub in the quarterfinals of "The Ultimate Fighter 10," Madsen has gone undefeated in the UFC, notching three straight decision victories.
Yvel, meanwhile, is still searching for his first UFC win after coming up short in his first two attempts. A loss against Madsen could spell the end of his tenure with the organization.
UFC 121 will take place on Oct. 23 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA.
Madsen last three fights:
Win (Unanimous Decision): Karlos Vemola - UFC 116 (07/03/10)
Win (Unanimous Decision): Mostapha Al-turk - UFC 112 (04/10/10)
Win (Split Decision): Justin Wren - The Ultimate Finale 10 (12/05/09)
Yvel last three fights:
Loss (Unanimous Decision): Ben Rothwell - UFC 115 (06/12/10)
Loss (TKO): Junior dos Santos - UFC 108 (01/02/10)
Win (KO): Pedro Rizzo - Ultimate Chaos: Lashley vs. Sapp (06/27/09)
Who Needs A Win: UFC 118 Edition
For every UFC event, TapouTVTC.com chronicles the fighters who have their backs up against the wall. These articles are speculation, and do not represent any sort of insider information.
Name: Gabe Ruediger
Weight class: Lightweight
Weight class: Lightweight
Fighting: Joe Lauzon
Record: 0-1 UFC, 17-5 overall
How he got here: Ruediger's first and only official UFC appearance came at UFC 63 in Sept. 2006, when he was TKO'd in the second round by Melvin Guillard. He then appeared as a cast member on "The Ultimate Fighter 5," but was kicked off the show after he failed to make weight for his bout against Corey Hill. Since then, he has gone 7-2 with various promotions, and is riding a five-fight win streak, all stoppages, with four coming by submission.
Why he needs the win: Ruediger replaces an injured Terry Etim on the Spike TV preliminary portion of UFC 118. Given his less-than-amicable departure from the organization, and the dearth of talent in the UFC's lightweight division, a poor performance could spell another one-fight stint for the submission specialist.
Name: Dan Miller
Weight class: Middleweight
Weight class: Middleweight
Fighting: John Salter
Record: 3-3 UFC, 11-4(1) overall, currently on a three-fight losing streak
How he got here: Fresh off of winning the IFL's middleweight title, Miller won his first three UFC fights, but has since dropped three straight unanimous decisions to Chael Sonnen, Demian Maia and Michael Bisping.
Why he needs the win: Miller's losses have come against three of the best fighters in the middleweight division, but few fighters can survive a four-fight losing streak in the UFC. A loss against the less-experienced Salter should be enough to put Miller on the chopping block.
Name: James Toney
Weight class: Heavyweight
Name: James Toney
Weight class: Heavyweight
Fighting: Randy Couture
Record: 0-0
How he got here: Toney followed UFC president Dana White around the country, released a bunch of Youtube videos, asked for Brock Lesnar, turned down Kimbo Slice, and eventually got a fight with Couture.
Why he needs the win: White has made it clear that he expects Couture to take Toney down and finish him immediately. White's best-case scenario is that Couture does exactly that, and sends Toney packing from the sport after one "freak show" fight. The worst-case scenario? Toney does the unthinkable and knocks out the UFC hall-of-famer, and White is left with a boxing vs. MMA PR nightmare.
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