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WEC 17: 'Halloween Fury 4'
October 14th, 2005
The Palace Casino,
Lemoore, CA


Single matchups:
Ricco Rodriguez defeats Jimmy Ambriz by TKO at 4:13, RD 1.
Lavar Johnson defeats Corey Salter by TKO at 3:37, RD 1.
Mike Pyle defeats Bret Bergmark by triangle choke at 3:36, RD 1.
Gabe Ruediger defeats Sam Wells by unanimous decision.
Poppies Martinez vs. Robert Breslin declared a no contest.
Vernon 'Tiger' White defeats Alex Stiebling by KO at 0:09, RD 2.
Cole Escovedo defeats Joe Martin by triangle choke at 1:05, RD 1.
Antonio Banuelos defeats Ed Tomaselli by TKO at 2:25, RD 1.
Gil Castillo defeats Steve Ramirez by TKO at 4:01, RD 2.

Shane Carwin defeats Carlton Jones by TKO at 2:11, RD 1.
Kenny Ento defeats Charles Price by armbar at 1:19, RD 1.
Andrew Martinez defeats Jimmy Dexter by DQ at 1:12, RD 1.


4-Man tournament seminfinals:
Justin Levens defeats Jorge Oliveira by KO, RD 1.
Scott Smith defeats Tim McKenzie by TKO at 2:25, RD 1.

Final:
Scott Smith defeats Tait Fletcher* by TKO at 3:55, RD 1.


*Injury replacement.

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Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (center)

Brazilian journalist Eduardo Alonso announced the following info regarding the upcoming US seminar by the Rua brothers, Murilo 'Ninja' and Mauricio 'Shogun':


"Hello Folks,

After our first time doing a tour in the USA, this past January, much has went on! Plenty of Seminars in Europe, Ninja (Hopefully in about 10 days) with another win in Pride, a great bout with Quinton Jackson, and most of all, Shogun becoming the GP Champ, being so young! Who would guess? We would =)

Now, it's time to return to the USA for some more seminars, as we had a blast last time, meeint great people and going to great cities! Those who have been to the Brothers seminars, knows that it's a good one, going from all aspects of MMA, and showing stuff that they USE, believe and WORKS, always with their approach to fighting and their style! Also, they are very nice people, more than willing to interact, and make new friends!

So, this time, we want to make things in advance! Of course we plan on returning to the same places were we had a great time, last time around, like Atlanta, Taunton, Philadelphia and Washington, but we want to also go to new places and that's why it's important to book things earlier and ASAP, before the schedule gets complete!

Academies, fans, friends, promoters or anyone else interested in having the seminar, attend the seminar, or just curious about it, please don't be shy and email us at

edualonsomm@gmail.com

If you have been to the seminar, and want to share your opinion and help out, feel free =)

Thanks a lot, and sorry for the long post.

Eduardo Alonso"

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Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons (right) in Europe.

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' reports that Jose 'Pele' Landi-Jons will return from his successful seminar tour in Croatia and Slovenia at the end of the month, and is scheduled to participate on the next 'Jungle Fight' card in November.

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BY SCOOP MCTROLL

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.


In the January of 2001 the ailing reality fighting contest known as The Ultimate Fighting Championship, was purchased from its founder, the SEG CORPORATION by ZUFFA LLC. Three men, Frank Fertitta III, his younger brother Lorenzo Fertitta and their brother in law, the low profile but nonetheless powerful, Blake Sartini, are the owners of ZUFFA LLC. Sartini has since resigned from Station Casino's however and his current role in ZUFFA is unknown to this reporter.



Frank III (left) and Lorenzo (right).

The Fertitta brothers Frank III and Lorenzo, take the limelight in this partnership and have recently become known to millions of people through the reality television show 'American Casino'. As the CEO and President respectively, of the Station Casinos Empire, they appear on the surface to be amiable and successful young businessmen. Las Vegas residents may know of Frank through his involvement in many charities and community projects, including Catholic Charities, Opportunity Village and the Las Vegas Chapter of the I Have A Dream Foundation. They may know of Lorenzo Fertitta from his time on the board of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, or as the chairman of the Nevada Resort Association. The two brothers donate hundreds of thousands of dollars per year to the Republican Party and they are an integral part of the Las Vegas A-list social scene. Many people have wondered just how they came to be so successful at such relatively young ages and where they came from. Our in depth report 'The Z-Files' will explore these issues and attempt to throw some light on the history of the family behind The Ultimate Fighting Championship. I hope you enjoy reading The Z-Files; it is the result of several months of research.

Part II

In 1960 Las Vegas was a sleazy paradise for the scum of society, the mob was heavily invested in Vegas, through both the covert ownership of Casinos and in the skimming scam that earned them millions of dollars. Guiseppi 'Nick' Civella was the head of the Kansas City mob and along with his brother, Carl 'The Cork', had been making a fortune through illicit means in Vegas casinos. They received a setback however when they became charter members of the infamous Nevada "Black Book", which banned them from all Vegas gaming venues for life. Their nephew, Anthony Civella would soon become the third family member to end up in the black book. This meant that they needed to find another way of getting some of the money being splashed around Vegas.

Frank Fertitta jr. arrived in Vegas in the same year and his family's reputation appeared to open many doors for him. He immediately got work in one of the Casino's and his official job was that of a bellboy. In a remarkable rate of success, Frank soon became a Blackjack dealer and then worked his way into management. Throughout the 1960's Frank Fertitta jr gained a reputation for being a street smart operator who understood the business as well as anyone could. Not bad for a guy who arrived in town a few years prior with little more than the shirt on his back, or so the story goes.


Nick's nephew Anthony Civella, another Black Book member.

The infamous Nevada Gaming Commission Black Book



During this same period, the Kansas City mob were eager to get their claws back into some of the Vegas revenue. In 1970 the FBI ran surveillance on Nick Civella through the use of wire taps and acquired enough evidence to arrest him and several other mobsters for fixing the Superbowl between Kansas and Minnesota. An associate of Civella's named Sol Landie was given immunity in return for testifying against Civella. In November that same year, Landie's home was invaded by 4 black men who forced him to watch as they stripped his wife naked and forced her to commit felatio on each one of them. Then they took turns at savagely raping and sodomizing her while forcing Landie to watch the entire ordeal. Once they had finished with his wife, they murdered Landie. Before they left, they arranged the room to look as though it was a botched robbery attempt. A few days later the 4 men were arrested and they admitted that they had been paid to kill Landie because of his testimony. Eventually, Nick Civella would serve 20 months for his part in the Superbowl scam.


By the early 1970's the Kansas City mob had struck up an association with a high profile Vegas Casino star named Carl Thomas. Thomas was soon taken under the wing of the Kansas City mob and he was used by them as a front man, a respectable cover for the mob. The Kansas City mob controlled the notorious Teamsters Union and they had been using the Teamster union members fund money for several years to fund illegal activities. Using Teamsters Union money, the mob purchased several casinos in Las Vegas, the most famous one being the Stardust. Through a strawman named Alan Glick, the Kansas City mob also purchased and sold The Fremont, the Tropicana, the Hacienda and the Marina during the 1970's.

Carl Thomas had been made the Chief Executive Officer of Glick's casinos and he quickly recommended his friend Frank Fertitta jr for a President's position. The one time bellboy was now the President of the Fremont and worked directly under the mob stooge, Alan Glick. Many of you may remember Glick's thinly diguised character 'Mr Green' in the Martin Scorcese movie 'Casino' starring Robert De Niro. 'Casino' was based on the true story of the mafia casino skimming operations at Glick's casinos. Skimming operations that, according to FBI wiretap transcripts, Frank Fertitta was involved in.


The movie 'Casino' was based on the skimming of the Fremont Casino, when Frank Fertitta jr was it's President.

In 1976 the Kansas City mobster Carl Thomas formed a partnership with Frank Fertitta jr and they started a 5000 square foot gaming venue aptly named 'The Casino', the name would later be changed to 'The Bingo Palace' and eventually 'Palace Station'. Now, Vegas executives did get paid decent salaries even in those days, but it's difficult to believe the official version that together they "scraped together" the money to start 'The Casino'. For one thing, Carl Thomas was owned by the Kansas City mob and anything he was involved in, they were involved in. There is little doubt that at least Thomas's share of 'The Casino' was backed by mob money, namely that of the Civella Brothers and their La Cosa Nostra mafia chapter in Kansas City.

Oddly, Fertitta and Thomas continued to work for the other casinos, despite now owning one themselves. As a mafia strawman, Glick was pushed to one side by the mob and they put their own guys in to run the casinos. Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal and Tony "The Ant" Spilotro, made millions for the mob by skimming the slot machine takings at the casinos. Rosenthal, who was played by the actor Robert de Niro in the movie 'Casino' (Tony "The Ant" Spilotro was played by Joe Pesci), was officially known as Glick's entertainment director and he allegedly reported to the mafia bosses in Kansas and Chicago, who between them had financed Glick with $62 million in loans from the Teamsters Union.


The real Frank 'Lefty' Rosenthal

The FBI had long suspected an elaborate skimming operation was taking place at some of the four Glick owned casinos and launched 'Operation Strawman', which was a massive surveillance operation that included telephone wiretaps. It is in one of these wiretaps that Frank Fertitta jr becomes implicated in the skimming operation. In this particular scam, the management rigged the scales to make them read only a third of the actual weight of the coins. The extra money was skimmed and set aside, later being converted into paper bills. The skimming was taking place at The Tropicana and at the Fremont, where Frank Ferttita jr was the President.



The Fremont Hotel, where the mob made a killing during Frank Fertitta jr's reign.

The Tropicana Hotel, another victim of the mob's skimming.


Below is the transcript of the FBI wiretap involving Frank Fertitta jr, Tropicana Manager Don Shepard and Kansas City mobster Carl Thomas.

FBI Wiretap of the Bingo Palace Casino, Las Vegas, Nev. Feb 7, 1979.
9.00pm outgoing call:

Frank Fertitta Jr, Carl Thomas voices heard, inaudible conversation takes place between them as the number 9739-2222 is dialled from The Bingo Palace.

FEMALE OPERATOR: Tropicana

FERTITTA: Don Shepard, please (casino manager)

FERTITTA: Hello Shep.

SHEPARD: Yeah.

FERTITTA: Frank.

SHEPARD: What are you doing?

FERTITTA: I'm sitting here having a glass of wine with Mr. Thomas.

SHEPARD: Oh, good.

FERTITTA: He's telling me how smart he is and, im sitting here listening to him like an idiot.

SHEPARD: Yeah.

FERTITTA: Yeah.

SHEPARD: If you need anybody to tell you how dumb you are come on over, im pretty good at that.

FERTITTA: (Laugh)

SHEPARD: Ah, this, listen this conversation isn't being recorded is it?

FERTITTA: I, I really couldn't tell ya.

SHEPARD: Yeah. Ask, ask, a ask Carl if anybody's going to go boogie-ing tonight. I'm ready to boogie, do a little YMCA number.

FERTITTA: You're ready?

SHEPARD: Oh, yeah, shit, yeah.

FERTITTA: Jesus Christ, I don't believe this.

SHEPARD: I'm just sitting here, my legs are twitching. I can hardly wait to dance.

FERTITTA: We, were just talking about going out of town or something.

SHEPARD: Oh, yeah, well actually I should go out of town to dance.

INTERUPTION OF RECORDING

SHEPARD: Did you see me?

FERTITTA: I didn't see you.

SHEPARD: Oh?

FERTITTA: No.

SHEPARD: A quarter of it whatever.

FERTITTA: Right, so if these coins cost us say $20,000, we got $150,000 on, you know, we're going to have like $130,000 in excess cash.

SHEPARD: Yeah.

FERTITTA: You know.

SHEPARD: Yeah. We don't have that problem over here.

FERTITTA: Well, yea, you...well I don't mean excess cash, but I mean more cash than they have so, I don't think its funny here.

SHEPARD: We've got…I've got about like $80,000 stock piled.

FERTITTA: Yeah.

SHEPARD: You know or something, we, we haven't felt any crunch or anything I was just curious if you're, you know.

FERTITTA: Well we had $50,000 see, but I didn't want to make the change over here until we got them all cause $50,000 wouldn't, you know, we couldn’t make the change with 50, so, ah, we need like 150.

SHEPARD: When are you going to switch your tokens?

FERTITTA: As soon as I get them all.

SHEPARD: Yeah.

FERTITTA: I'll switch in fact I think we're supposed to have them all. Oh, Jimmy gave me a date today, but I've forgot what it was. Ah, now maybe next week or something, then I'll probably just go ahead and switch over.

SHEPARD: Okay, well listen I'll talk to you.

FERTITTA: OK


The FBI swooped on Glick's strawman empire in 1979 and arrested Fertitta's partner Carl Thomas, Glick, the Civello Brothers and about a dozen others. Despite the seemingly incriminating wiretap transcript, the FBI could not get enough substantial evidence to charge Fertitta. Despite the testimony of former Fremont Security Chief, Harold McBride, where he swore under oath that Frank Fertitta jr had been involved in the skimming operation at the Fremont, and wiretap evidence of the Civella's and Thomas that implicated him, Fertitta was never charged with the skimming at Fremont casino where he presided.

Amazingly, when Thomas first became implicated by the FBI, the ownership of The Bingo Palace was transferred solely to Frank Fertitta jr. Did this mean that Frank Fertitta was now a front man for the Kansas City mob, or are we to believe that they happily sold him Thomas's share of the casino and wished him well? It's a tough call, I know.

In 1979 the Nevada Gaming Control board ordered Glick to sell up and he did, to associates of Moe Dalitz, the man that Frank's relative, Sam Maceo had helped to get started all those years ago. Glick sold for $2 million in cash, the assumption of $92 million in debts and with another $66 million to be paid from the casino's earnings by 1991.

Although he was one of the few to escape prison, Frank Fertitta jr did not go completely unscathed in the aftermath of the skimming scandal. Fertitta was the target of a four year investigation by the Nevada Control Board but in 1989 they voted 2-1 not to initiate disciplinary action against him.

Despite this decision, Fertitta's reputation had been damaged. Some sources claim that Frank Fertitta jr knew that his mob connections could hamper any future applications for gaming licences. Whatever the actual reasons, in 1993 Frank Fertitta jr officially stepped down as the Chairman of the board and handed over to his son, Frank Fertitta III, or 'Frankie Three Sticks', as he is known in some circles. The company then became public. Station Casino's then applied for licences with the Missouri Gaming Commission to run casinos in Missouri. Many would ask if it's possible for a business that was believed to be built on mob money and mob connections to become squeaky clean simply by changing the name of the Chairman.

In 1993 the Missouri Gaming Commission called on Frank Fertitta's former employer and business partner, the convicted casino skimmer Carl Thomas. They requested information from Thomas about Frank Fertitta jr, Thomas agreed to attend an inquiry with them. Before he did this however, Thomas drove to Vegas from his home in Oregon and met with Station executives to discuss his testimony with them. Noone really knows exactly how that meeting went down or what transpired. The people that do know, arent talking. He then left Vegas to return to Oregon before heading to meet with the Missouri Gaming Commission. Before he could attend that meeting and give testimony on Frank Fertitta's background, Thomas was killed in a bizarre single car accident, it was a clear night and the road was in good condition. Thomas knew the area well. Due to Thomas's untimely death, the Missouri Gaming Commission were unable to complete their inquiry into Frank Fertitta jr and they granted licences to Station Casinos.


A Palace Station Frank Fertitta Anniversary Gaming Chip(Above)

A recent photo of Frank Fertitta (Left)

Today, Frank Fertitta jr keeps busy with his finance company, Frank Fertitta Enterprises and with his many positions in the community, including being on the board of Trustees of the University of Las Vegas and a member of the Bishop Gorman High School Development Corporation. These days Frank Fertitta jr mixes with the Governor of Nevada and is a respected member of the Las Vegas community.



Frank Rosenthal (Left), pictured with Frank Sinatra, says Thomas could have been bumped.(See below)





When asked about his former associates Frank Fertitta jr and Carl Thomas, the infamous criminal Frank 'Lefty' Rosenthal, recollects;

"Carl introduced me to Frank Fertitta, as "my main guy", and his right-hand man. Frank became the President of Allen Glick's Fremont Hotel Casino at the recommendation of Carl Thomas during my temporary absence from the industry while I was awaiting the outcome my appeal versus the Nevada Gaming Commission. When I regained my former position as the CEO of all properties under the "Argent" (Allen R. Glick Enterprises) umbrella Frank and I became more interactive. Frank had gained a solid reputation as a topnotch casino executive who understood the games with a high degree of professionalism. After several private meetings and close personal observation I too agreed that Frank was well suited to operate the second largest Casino in the downtown area.

During the course of the next several years Frank with assistance from Carl Thomas forged an imposing empire. Soon thereafter Carl Thomas died when his car ran off a winding road in the mountains of Oregon, I think he could have been bumped! In 1976 Frank opened the Bingo Palace, ultimately renamed Palace Station. Next came Boulder Station, then Texas Station, Barley's and Sunset Station.

Frank was driving hard on course to become a behemoth within the gaming industry. In 1998 he purchased King 8, renaming it The Wild, Wild West. Next came the Santa Fe and Fiesta casinos. Frank acquired 49 acres near Jackie Gaughn's Suncoast, with future plans to build on other parcels at Craig Ranch Station and Martin Luther King Road. Frank decided he had enough and retired into the sunset. Some guys always seem to windup with all the dirty work. Estimated wealth $1 Billion" - Frank 'Lefty' Rosenthal.


Coming soon in the Z-files III. Frank Fertitta jr and his son "Frankie Three Sticks" set their sights on Missouri. 'Lucky' Lorenzo joins the family business and the brothers sign up for Boxercise classes. Watch this space for the Z-Files III.

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The History of the family behind the Ultimate Fighting Championship

BY SCOOP MCTROLL

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.


In the January of 2001, the ailing reality fighting contest known as The Ultimate Fighting Championship, was purchased from its founder, the SEG CORPORATION by ZUFFA LLC. Three men, Frank Fertitta III, his younger brother Lorenzo Fertitta and their brother in law, the low profile but nonetheless powerful, Blake Sartini, are the owners of ZUFFA LLC.


Lorenzo (Far left) and Frank III (Far right) with a friend.

The Fertitta brothers Frank III and Lorenzo, take the limelight in this partnership and have recently become known to millions of people through the reality television show 'American Casino'. As the CEO and President respectively, of the Station Casinos Empire, they appear to be amiable and successful young businessmen. Las Vegas residents may know of Frank III through his involvement in many charities and community projects, including Catholic Charities, Opportunity Village and the Las Vegas Chapter of the I Have A Dream Foundation. They may know of Lorenzo Fertitta from his time on the board of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, or as the chairman of the Nevada Resort Association. The two millionare brothers donate hundreds of thousands of dollars per year to the Republican Party and they are an integral part of the Las Vegas A-list social scene. Many people have wondered just how they came to be so successful at such relatively young ages and where they came from. Our in depth report 'The Z-Files' will explore these issues and attempt to throw some light on the history of the family behind The Ultimate Fighting Championship. I hope you enjoy reading The Z-Files; it is the result of several months of research.

Part 1

It is 1993 in Galveston, Texas and a relative to the Fertittas, 89 year old Vic Maceo has just shown how business is done in his family. The aging alleged mobster had walked into the Galveston Post Office, pulled out a .38 calibre revolver and started firing at postal worker Pete Miller, whom Maceo believed owed him money. Maceo's aim was a little off since his hey day but he still managed to hit Miller in the right arm, shattering the bones and bringing him to the ground, wincing in pain.

When the Maceos and the Fertittas ruled the town a few decades prior, this was the way disputes were settled in Galveston, Texas. In this case Vic Maceo had sold a house to Pete Miller for $45,000 in 1968 and when Miller sold it in 1991, he sold it for $180,000. Naturally Vic felt that some of the profit should have been his. Miller had once worked as a busboy at the Maceo-Fertitta controlled illegal casino known as 'The Balinese Room' and Vic C. Mateo, who was also known as 'Little Vic' to distinguish him from his cousin Vic A. 'Gigolo' Maceo, could not cope with the fact that a busboy had seemingly gotten the better of him.

As Vic Maceo attempted to make his escape in his sports car, police apprehended him. He gave himself up willingly and when approached by the police, he said in a defiant and firm voice, "When you look a guy in the eye and tell him he owes you forty grand and he tells you, 'Let me get the file,' you know that the son of a bitch is lying." As the police slapped handcuffs on him he retorted with "You don't handcuff a gentleman in this town!" Such was the power that the Maceo and Ferttita gang once wielded in Galveston


Fertitta In-Law 'Big' Sam Maceo, The 'Barber of Galveston'

It all began in the early 20th century when two Sicilian barbers arrived in Galveston from Sicily via Louisiana. Rose and Sam Maceo were soon to build an illegal gambling empire from simple bootlegging roots and become known as Papa Rose and Big Sam. Along with their relatives the Fertitta family, they would control the black economy, the organised crime and the politics of Galveston for many years. One of their more well known illegal casinos was 'The Balinese Room' but by the mid 1930's, and the time that prohibition ended, they had built up an entire city block of illegal casinos and gambling dens in Galveston. Many people feel that they created the Vegas format before Vegas ever existed. Sam Maceo organized for all the big name singers and bands of the time to appear at his casinos, including Frank Sinatra.



The Balinese Room in Galveston Texas.

A gaming chip from the illegal casino

The Maceo-Fertitta gang was responsible for funding many things in the Galveston community and despite obvious connections to the New Orleans mob; no one dared to complain about the criminal benefactors of the town. In fact those that did complain usually ended up sleeping with the fishes, according to local legend.

The Maceo-Fertitta gang wielded great power and most of the other mobsters knew better than to tread on their turf. The Chicago crime czar Al Capone had heard about the lucrative gambling and bootleg empire that the Maceos and Fertittas had built in Galveston and he wanted some of that action. He planned to at first become a partner with them and then muscle them out of the picture once he had his hooks firmly embedded. Al Capone sent his main man Frank Nitti to Galveston to intimidate the Maceos into allowing Capone to "invest" in their businesses. The Maceos received word of Nitti's impending arrival and they decided that they would flat-out refuse any offers from Nitti on behalf of Capone to take a piece of their illegal gambling pie.

They decided to call on the skills of the most ruthless member of their family's gang, Maceo In-Law, Anthony Fertitta. Nitti arrived in town and was introduced to the Maceos and to Anthony Fertitta, Fertitta told Nitti that they needed to talk and he took Nitti for a drive in his car. The two men were gone for several hours and it is not clear what events took place during that time. All that is known is that Nitti was dropped at the city limits very late that evening, he appeared to be shaken but alive and well. No one knows what took place during the car ride but when Nitti made it back to Chicago, he told Capone that the Fertittas were no pushovers and it would require an all out war to move in on their territory. Capone never pursued it any further.

Rose Maceo was suspected of many gangland killings during the 1930's. Including his first wife and her lover, but no Maceo was ever convicted of a felony.


Al Capone came off second best when he tried to muscle in on the Fertittas.

Sam Maceo, was the brain behind the Maceo-Fertitta empire and he was directly under the control of New Orleans mob boss Carlos Marcello, who later would be linked to the assassination of JFK. Sam also helped the pioneer Vegas hotelier, Moe Dalitz to get a gaming licence for The Desert Inn Las Vegas's first casino, not very long before his death. Papa Rose and Big Sam had both passed away by the 1950's and many of the remaining Maceo's and the dealers who worked in their illegal casinos moved out to Las Vegas.



The Galveston gambling empire was under the control of mob boss Carlos Marcello, who would later be implicated in the JFK assassination.


The Fertittas, who were related to the Maceos by marriage, took control of the Galveston gaming empire, where they honed their skills in the casino and hospitality fields, a legacy that would remain lucrative to the family for generations to come. Unlike the socially more adept Maceos, who flaunted their success despite its illegality, the Fertittas did not take too kindly to publicity.


The August 1955 edition of Time Magazine that exposed the Fertittas as thugs.


In 1955, a Time magazine LIFE reporter visited one of the illegal Fertitta casinos in Galveston. In an article entitled 'Thugs vs The Press', he reported the following in the August 1955 edition of Time Magazine.

" Many a mug on the edge of the big time thinks there is a formula for dealing with newsmen: intimidate or bribe. In Galveston, Texas, where vice and crime abounds, Gambling Boss Anthony Fertitta tried that formula in an effort to prevent LIFE from getting pictures of his illegal operations. It did not work.

After LIFE Photographer Joe Scherschel and Reporter Hank Suydam took pictures (with a concealed camera) in one of Fertitta's gambling houses, the boss and two henchmen followed the LIFE men to their hotel. Photographer Scherschel took his film upstairs while Reporter Suydam encountered Fertitta and his two strong-arm men in the lobby. Fertitta demanded an explanation of what Suydam and Scherschel had been doing, suddenly smashed Suydam in the face. By the time Suydam had picked himself off the floor, Fertitta had switched tactics, tried to stuff a $20 bill into the reporter's pocket.

Last week, just before LIFE published "Wide-Open Galveston Mocks Texas Laws," Gambling Boss Fertitta was tried for simple assault in the Galveston justice court. After Fertitta pleaded "not guilty" and then refused to take the stand, Justice J. L. McKenna found Fertitta guilty, gave him the maximum punishment: a $25 fine. The conviction was much more important than the small fine. In Galveston, where gang leaders like Fertitta have long tried to pose as legitimate businessmen, the criminal conviction reported on Page One of Texas newspapers helped to expose these "legitimate businessmen" for the thugs they are."


Partially in light of the adverse publicity that they began to attract and partially due to the more conservative political climate of the mid to late 1950's, the Galveston gambling empire began to slowly crumble. Many of the Fertittas also began to migrate to Las Vegas and it all finally came to a crashing halt in Galveston in 1957 when the Attorney General Will Wilson, along with the Texas Rangers, smashed the Fertitta's illegal gambling racket. The glory days for the Maceos and Fertittas were over in Texas, for the moment at least.


With no choice but to shut up shop and leave town, a mass exodus took place. With the vast experience the owners and employees had gained in Galveston by running or working in the biggest chain of illegal casinos and live entertainment restaurants in the country, Las Vegas seemed to be the natural place to migrate. A pilgrimage from Galveston to Vegas of mobsters, card dealers, croupiers, hores and gamblers began. In those days Vegas was not as heavily regulated as it is today and offered the lure of an easy buck to such dregs of society.

In 1960, a 21-year-old man named Frank Fertitta Jr would arrive in Las Vegas and find work at a Casino as a bellboy. With him are his wife and newborn son, Frank III.

The fun for him, was just beginning.


(That was Part 1 of Scoop McTroll's new series 'The Z-Files'. Watch this page for part 2, coming to FS 24-7 soon.)

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By Eddie Goldstein


Ryan Bennett (left)

Fightsport.com classic: Originally posted on September 22nd, 2003.


With all the shady boxing people seeping into the MMA game, I thought that now was the time to compile a list of the 'top 5 MMA backstabs'. The list is not meant to cause any commotion, and I am sure there are 1,000 other MMA backstabs that can make this list as well. But these are the top 5 that stick out in my head that I remember the most. Enjoy!

1.) Tito Ortiz effectively ducking Chuck Liddell and backstabbing Zuffa - In essense, Tito basically backstabbed two parties when he decided to duck Liddell. First, by backstabbing a fighter (Liddell) that he once claimed was a very good friend who he could never fight for just an ordinary payday, when in fact most insiders already knew Tito would never fight Liddell for fear of losing, thus losing his reputation as the number one UFC posterboy. The second backstab of course was the way he tried to hold Zuffa and Dana White hostage when they needed him the most. Zuffa and Dana White made him, protected him, and promoted the hell out of him. Of course none of this mattered to the reluctant Tito Ortiz with fear and dollar signs in his eyes.

2.) Ryan Bennett backstabbing Eddie Bravo (with Bruce Buffer in support) - In what has to be one of the biggest professional blunders in MMA, Ryan Bennett sent an e-mail to both Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta, in which he ratted on Eddie Bravo for making marijuana posts on a well known internet forum. Bennett didn't count on the fact that someone at Zuffa headquarters saw it fit to forward the backstabbing e-mail to Eddie Bravo himself! That's when the shit really hit the fan. Prior to all that drama, Bennett had been whining for months about losing his UFC post-fight interviewer job (Eddie Bravo eventually got Bennett's spot doing the post-fight interviews), and whined to no end behind the scenes about trying to get his job back. Bruce Buffer was at least smart enough not to send the actual e-mail. However, Bennett's reputation still hasn't recovered from this scandal in the eyes of most fans.

3.) Frank Shamrock backstabs Jerry Bohlander - Frank Shamrock had been dilligently training the Lion's Den fighters and believed it was now his time to shine. Ken Shamrock thought differently and that's where the problems began. While Ken was away on WWF duty, Frank took it upon himself to intercept an SEG delievered contract, take Jerry Bohlander (the guy SEG wanted to fight for the title against Kevin Jackson) out of the contract, secretly negotiate with SEG and insert himself in there as the fighter who would get the title shot. Frank won that fight in less then a minute, became the UFC middleweight champ, and the rest is history. That Frank wanted to make his own name and step out of Ken's shadow is a good thing. But what most fans found distasteful was the way he backstabbed his roommate Jerry Bohlander.

4.) Dan Dease refuses to pay full price and backstabbing Rudolfo Gamez - The new ICC co-president Dan Dease, who has now affiliated himself with the infamous and legendary boxing promoter Don King, originally bought the ICC's cage second-hand off of Rudolfo Gamez of Texas. Dease inspected the cage, agreed to the price, hauled it off to Minnesota, and then refused to pay the agreed upon price. Instead, Dease gave Gamez five times less then what he said he would pay. Gamez took Dease to court and won, but it is still not known if Dease has paid off the remainder of the bill.

5.) Rorion Gracie trademarking the Gracie name and effectively backstabbing his whole family - Revisionist history says that it if weren't for Rorion, none of the Gracies would be prospering the way they are today with the explosion of MMA in America and Japan. While this is technically true, one can also see that Rorion did not have his family in mind when he decided to trademark the family name in America, and tried to do the same in Brazil. While Rorion's idea of the UFC helped out everyone in the end, his act of trying to usurp the family name from his own family still doesn't sit well with most fans.




Eddie Goldstein is a legendary underground journalist of boxing, pro-wrestling, and now MMA. His contributions to MMA can be found here exclusively at Fightsport.com from now on.

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Below is part one of a 2-part series by Michael Fry, co-author of the book entitled 'The Grapplers Guide to Sports Nutrition':


As much as a grappler needs to have heart on the mat to win, they also need to condition the heart long before the match begins. A strong, well-conditioned cardiovascular system (heart and blood vessels) will enable the body to receive more oxygen and a higher volume of blood with every pump of the heart. It will also allow the wrestler to sustain a high level of exertion for a long time. Obviously, such cardiovascular conditioning will enhance both the youngster’s health and their wrestling performance.

In part 1 of our series on cardiovascular training we learned how the body is affected during exercise. We learned how our body uses ATP for energy and how aerobic training helps us to recover from anaerobic bouts of exercise. When we talk about training we are not trying to take any thing away from what coaches are doing during practice only explaining how training affects the body.

In part 2 of our series on cardiovascular training we have made a change to our program so we can take a deeper look at cardiovascular training by going inside the different types of endurance that we as wrestlers use.

What is the objective of endurance training for wrestlers?

In a sport that many spectators characterize as sudden, explosive attacks and counterattacks that are executed on a repeated basis for duration up to 6 minutes or until an opponent has been pinned, the need for endurance training is simple, to develop the energy production system(s) to meet the demands of a wrestling match. It has been documented that the average wrestling match has an explosive attack executed approximately every 6-10 seconds. For top level athletes endurance training is just as important as training for technique. When it comes to a wrestling match, weekend tournament wrestlers who lack good muscular endurance and aerobic/anaerobic conditioning will start to tire as they wrestle in the later rounds.

What types of endurance are there?

Endurance is the ability of your body to maintain a high quality of work in the face of fatigue. There are 4 major types of endurance, aerobic endurance, anaerobic endurance, speed endurance, and strength and power endurance. All 4 require a good sound aerobic conditioning level to maintain them.

Aerobic Endurance

Aerobic means "With Oxygen." During aerobic exercise the body is working at a level that the demands for oxygen and fuel can be met by the body's intake. Physiological adaptations to aerobic exercise involve some of the following:

Respiratory System:

Enhanced Oxygen exchange in the lungs
Improved blood flow throughout the lungs
Decreased submaximal respiratory rate
Decreased submaximal pulmonary ventilation
Cardiovascular System:

Increased cardiac output
Increased blood volume, red blood cell number, and hemoglobin concentration Decreased resting heart rate
The basis for almost any sports conditioning program is good aerobic capacity. As we mentioned before a good solid post-season and off-season aerobic conditioning program will be the foundation for the upcoming season. So what does all this mean to a wrestler? Having a good solid aerobic conditioning level will ensure that your heart beats slower but stronger, moves greater volumes of oxygenated blood (which is important for your muscles), and you breath slower.

Anaerobic Endurance

Anaerobic means "Without Oxygen." During anaerobic exercise at maximum effort, the body is working so hard that the demands for oxygen and fuel exceed the rate of supply and the muscles rely on stored reserves of fuel. Few sports display the anaerobic stress that wrestling does. The majority of the body's musculature is subject to prolonged, short bursts of high intensity efforts during the course of a match.

To ensure that wrestlers have the anaerobic capacity to compete, let's look at what anaerobic endurance is and how it affects the body. Anaerobic endurance (capacity) refers to the maximal amount of energy that can be produced during the first 15-90 seconds of all out effort. The major limitation on anaerobic capacity is the build up of lactic acid in the working muscles, a by-product of metabolism when the demand for oxygen in the working muscles is not met. Lactic acid causes the muscles to fatigue by disrupting biochemical reactions that produce energy for muscle contraction (The feeling you get in your forearms and lower back during and after a match). The effect of training for anaerobic endurance is to increase the muscles tolerance to lactic acid so that there is a corresponding resistance to fatigue.

Speed Endurance

Speed-endurance training improves your ability to tolerate increased amounts of lactic acid in your system and lessens your feelings of fatigue as you wrestle at high intensity. High speed drilling is a good way to develop speed endurance and when incorporated with chain matches or grind matches, will also help develop high levels of anaerobic conditioning. Running, swimming, bicycle riding at high speeds or for a given distance or time will also help increase your tolerance for lactic acid buildup.

Strength Endurance/Power Endurance

Strength endurance is the specific form of strength displayed in activities which require a relatively long duration of muscle tension with minimal decrease in efficiency. There are two types of strength endurance, dynamic strength-endurance, and static strength-endurance.

Dynamic strength-endurance is best known for movement during swimming, running, or rowing, where there is a repetitive motion executed in short rest intervals.

Static strength-endurance is associated with activities where it is necessary to exert isometric tension of varying magnitude and duration.

An example of when strength endurance for wrestling matters most is late in the 3rd period. You shoot a single leg takedown and your opponent sprawls down hard on your back. Pulling the leg into your body and being able to stand up with it to finish your move when your tired requires endurance. You will see many wrestlers slowly start to flatten out and not have enough static strength-endurance to hold the leg and keep their body upright.

Power endurance is another specific form of strength training that involves the recruitment of fast twitch fibers over a prolonged period of time. As mentioned above, anaerobic conditioning improves resistance to fatigue in a time frame of 15-90 seconds of all out effort; in the same way power endurance training can shorten the recovery time needed to produce explosive movements over a prolonged period.

An example of power endurance in wrestling is the ability to take that last second shot with extreme explosiveness to win the match and avoid going into overtime even though you are dog tired. Another example, outside of wrestling and inside the weight room, is when a person is doing box jumps. If you have an athlete perform 40 continuous box jumps, by about 10 or so (depending on the height of the box) that athlete will start to slow down (the extreme opposite of what we are trying to accomplish with box jumps) and probably have cut his shin on the edge of the box because of the inability to produce power past a certain point. Instead of doing 40 continuous jumps we would rather prescribe 10 sets of 4 or 8 sets of 5 jumps, hardly ever needing to go over reps of 5 unless utilizing a kettlebell, with rest in-between. You could say it’s kind of like interval training but with explosive and/or ballistic movements (kettlebell swings, Olympic lifts, plyometrics, etc.)

In conclusion, cardiovascular training for wrestlers is more that just running 2 miles or riding your bike around the block. As you are starting to see, wrestling is about anaerobic conditioning. Aerobic conditioning plays a major role in providing a good solid foundation for cardiovascular training but it’s the anaerobic weight training and conditioning that will carry you to the top of the podium.

In part 3 of our series we will take what we have learned about the body and endurance and use it for designing your own grappling workouts to help you become the best conditioned grapplers on the mat.

Michael Fry is the owner of Grapplers Gym and www.grapplersgym.com. Grapplers Gym is the home for advanced training and conditioning for today’s grappler. Also check out Mike’s best selling book The Grapplers Guide to Sports Nutrition available at www.grapplersnutrition.com



Michael Fry is the owner of Grapplers Gym and www.grapplersgym.com. He is also the Co-Author of the hottest book for grapplers titled The Grapplers Guide to Sports Nutrition. Mike can be reached by email at mike@grapplersgym.com

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Rickson Gracie


Rickson Gracie announced a new promotion he's helping to promote called 'The Budo Challenge'

Four fighters from different martial arts disciplines will be chosen for each of the six weight classes. Each weight class will have a single elimination tournament to decide its champion.

The event will take place in Los Angeles, California, from October 17th to the 21st. The following prize money will be awarded per weight division:

1st Place: USD$4,000;
2nd Place: USD$2,000;
3rd Place: USD$500 (two prizes)

Any interested fighters can contact the Budo Challenge Selection Committee in care of Kid Peligro at kidpeligro@gmail.com.

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Alexandre "Cacareco" Ferreira of the Brazilian Top Team.

Fight for Respect: 'Chute Boxe vs. Brazilian Top Team'
October 19th, 2005
Pavilhao Atlantico
Lisboa, Portugal


Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' reports that a Chute Boxe vs. Brazilian Top Team card will take place on October 19th in Portugal. The line-up will feature three representatives from each team facing off against each other:

Chute Boxe vs. BTT matchups (Chute Boxe fighters on left side):
Fabio Silva vs. Roan 'Jucao'
'Jamanta' vs. Alexandre 'Cacareco' Ferreira
Mauricio 'Veio' vs. Paulo Boiko

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Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic a day after his fight against Fedor Emelianenko.

PRIDE 30
October 23rd, 2005
Saitama Super Arena
Saitama, Japan


Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic vs. Josh Barnett
Fabricio Werdum vs. Sergei Kharitonov
Ken Shamrock vs. Kazushi Sakuraba
Murilo 'Ninja' Rua vs. Murad Chunkaiev
Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson vs. Hirotaka Yokoi
'Zuluzinho' vs. Henry 'Sentoryu' Miller
James Thompson vs. Alexandru Lungu
Makoto Takimoto vs. Yoon Dong-Sik

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Yoshiro Maeda

The DEEP promotion announced that the first round of its inaugural DEEP Featherweight Grand Prix will take place on October 28th.

The GP winner will be crowned as the inaugural 145-pound champion of the DEEP promotion. Below is the complete card:


145-pound GP:
Yoshiro Maeda vs. Taisho
Fabio Mello vs. Kazunari Imanari
Takeshi Yamazaki vs. Mike Brown
Atsuhiro Tsuboi vs. Muangfahlek Kiawichean

Single matchups:
Yasuhito Namekawa vs. Moon Jong Hyuk
Takahiro Oba vs. Cristiano Kaminishi
Hirohide Fujinuma vs. Wataru Takahashi
Yutaro Miyamoto vs. Naoki Seki
Yuya Shirai vs. Ryuji Ohbori

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AFC 14 Returns to
October 29th, 2005
The War Memorial Auditorium
Ft. Lauderdale, FL


Paul Rodriguez vs. J.Z. Cavalcante
Dustin 'Clean' Denes vs. TBA
Fabiano Capoani vs. TBA
Jorge Masvidal vs. TBA
Mike Bruno vs. TBA
Alex Schoenauer vs. TBA
Crafton Wallace vs. Diego Vitoski

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MFC 5: 'USA vs. Japan'
November 5th, 2005
Taj Mahal
Atlantic City, NJ

MMA matchups:
Chael Sonnen vs. TBA
Eddie Alvarez vs. Daisuke '13' Hanazawa
Kurt Pellegrino vs. TBA
Joe Lauzon vs. Hiroyuki Abe
Wilson Gouviea vs. Yusuke Masuda
Chris Mac Grath vs. 'BJ'
Alex Roberts vs. TBA

Kickboxing matchups:
Steven Berkolayko vs. TBA

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Royce Gracie announced the formation of 'FightFest', which he is helping to promote.

FightFest will feature MMA matchups, as well as featuring featuring up-and-coming alternative music acts.

The first show is scheduled for December 9th at the Roberts Municipal Stadium in Evansville, Indiana.

The card will feature the matchup of Eric 'Butterbean' Esch vs. Rich Wilson, as well as the band called 'Skid Row'. The full card will be announced at a later date.

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Vanderlei Silva

Vanderlei Silva was recently interviewed by Japanese journalist Takimoto. Here's what Vanderlei had to say:


Interviewer: Now that the PRIDE Middleweight GP is over, can you analyze your fight against Ricardo Arona?

Vanderlei: What fight? Actually, it wasn't much of a fight. It was one of the worst performances of my life, and I did the wrong tactics. What I don't accept is that I put on a bad show. I became very upset because I didn't do what my fans and everybody expected of me. But, thank God, I absorbed this, saw my mistakes, and now I have to train more. But I'm already doing this, and I am ready for the next fight.

Interviewer: And when is your next fight going to be?

Vanderlei: My next fight will be on December 31st. I still don't know against whom, but I asked my master Rudimar to do it again against Arona, because things are not going to stay like this. It doesn't matter, I never give up and next time that I face him I'm going to smash everything. Go straight at him with all my will. I saw that the kind of tactical fight I did against him is not for me.

Interviewer: What do you think about some of the critical comments that you are receiving?

Vanderlei: That's normal. Every sport is like this. It is a sport thing and it is a part of the job. You have to know how to absorb and filter, to not commit the same mistakes again. I never let anything keep me down.

Interviewer: And what do you think about Mauricio "Shogun" Rua's performance?

Vanderlei: I knew that if he made a classic fight he would show how prepared he is. This year was Shogun's year. He really surpassed the best. It would be unfair if he and I went to the final in this tournament. I would feel bad. We would fight, but come on, I wouldn't do a real fight with the guy. There's no way we can do this, this will never happen. I really like him, he is a really good guy, very humble, there is no way. I even said to the boss (DSE/PRIDE president Sakakibara), "If you want to let him (Shogun) win this, there is no problem for me". But he said that I am older, and have more time on the road. Shogun will have other opportunities. We set up that I would be the champion. But thank God everything went fine and he became the champion with his own merits. Everybody saw his superiority against the others. I expect that he will keep the focus now and keep training, because other real tough fights will come, and I think he discovered all the potential he has. He has a lot of things to show.

Interviewer: How about the fight between Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic and Fedor Emelianenko? What did you think?

Vanderlei: It was a real good fight. I saw this fight from the special seats, almost ringside. I was already rooting for Fedor, because I don't like Mirko. After, I had the opportunity to meet the guy, he came and talked to me as a very nice guy, very humble. I became surprised with the person that he really is. In the fight, he really did the right tactic... went straight forward at the other guy. It was a real nice fight. Fedor also kept the pace, and went the distance in 20 minutes of brawling. That was a real fight. And that's the way I'm going to fight from now on. I will came back to my style, this tactical way of fighting is not for me. I'm at 100 kg (220 pounds), and I don't know if I will fight against a heavier guy or again against Arona. So I can cut to 93 kg (205 pounds), or I can fight against a heavier guy. It doesn't matter against whom.

Interviewer: After PRIDE you went to Europe. How were things there?

Vanderlei: It was really good. I did a lot of things there. I did two full seminars in France, and they had to cut some people because we sold so many tickets. Some people stayed around the mat and they paid only to see the demonstrations, because there was no space for them to stay. It was really nice in the south of France. I talked to some guys there, I knew two famous rap groups there and we are trying to meet some very influential people to further the MMA cause over there. I went to St. Ettiene and met the goalkeeper of the professional soccer team, who is my fan and a really nice guy. There was going to be a match between St. Etienne and Barcelona, so they invited me to give the first kick of the game. I took pictures with Ronaldinho (Brazilian soccer star), a very nice guy. He said that he sees my fights, and that he likes MMA fights and follows the Brazilian guys. Then I went to Belgium. It is the second time that I went there, the last time I spent just a little time. There were a lot of people recognizing me in the streets, asking for autographs. Then I went to Holland, specifically Amsterdam. I'm also very known there. Now that I am back to Brazil I'm already working.

Interviewer: How was the reception of the Chute Boxe people when you came back?

Vanderlei: You know that there was a positive side in all of this; and it was the strength that a lot of people have given to me. I asked Master Rudimar and Rafael to not be nice to me, because if I had to receive some slaps, then I wanted them to give them to me. They really supported me, along with Cristiano Marcelo, Nino "Elvis" Schembri, all the guys that train together. Besides them, a lot of people came and talked to me, and sent me messages. It is a really good thing to experience this. Everyone is with me and with my team. After everything they did and are doing for me, I'm already grateful to my masters. The strength they gave to me, this strength, and this vibe. I went back to the academy and everybody gave me this support, I almost cried. Everything that I will do for my team, I always did, but know that everything that I can do for my friends, I will do.

Interviewer: What do you think about Sakuraba after the days he spent training with your team in Curitiba?

Vanderlei: The guy is really cool. I already had a good impression of him based on the times we've crossed. He was down to earth, and he's a great professional in his training routines and in his pace. Even the boss (Rudimar) said the guy is really cool, like a person that is, not as an athlete. He is an idol, a real idol. A lot of people here in Curitiba went to take pictures with the guy, went to ask for autographs. He is a very recognized person and deserves a lot of respect in the MMA scene.

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Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' recently spoke with Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogueira regarding his fight strategy if he is to face Fedor Emelianenko for a fourth time, as if being rumored in the media. Here's what Minotauro had to say:


"Because Fedor's strength is to ground'n'pound, I will improve my wrestling so that I don't get caught on the bottom. The guy is good and continues to improve a lot, but I will do everything to try and fight from the top position. I will use my boxing a lot, try to put him down and fight from the top, looking to get a submission." -Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogueira

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Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic a day after his fight against Fedor Emelianenko.

PRIDE 30
October 23rd, 2005
Saitama Super Arena
Saitama, Japan


Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic vs. Josh Barnett
Fabricio Werdum vs. Sergei Kharitonov
Ken Shamrock vs. Kazushi Sakuraba
Murilo 'Ninja' Rua vs. Murad Chunkaiev
Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson vs. Hirotaka Yokoi
'Zuluzinho' vs. Henry 'Sentoryu' Miller
James Thompson vs. Alexandru Lungu
Makoto Takimoto vs. Yoon Dong-Sik

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James Thompson (right)

DSE/PRIDE announced the matchup of James Thompson vs. Alexandru Lungu for their PRIDE 30 card on October 23rd.

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DSE/PRIDE has signed a deal with ESPN/Star Sports for their PRIDE TV show to be shown in India, which has a population of approximately one billion people, every Friday and Saturday at 10:00 P.M., starting October 14th.

The PRIDE TV show is similar to the one shown on Fox Sports Net in the US, in that it shows a compliation of previous fights in PRIDE.

PRIDE is now currently available via cable TV in over 40 countries, spanning 6 continents.

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WEC 17: 'Halloween Fury 4'
October 14th, 2005
The Palace Casino,
Lemoore, CA


Single matchups:
Alex Stiebling vs. Vernon 'Tiger' White
Marvin Eastman vs. John Lober
Ricco Rodriguez vs. Jimmy Ambriz
Gil Castillo vs. Mike Pyle
Chris Lytle vs. Savant Young
Gabe Ruediger vs. Sam Wells
Lavar Johnson vs. Rafael Real
Poppies Martinez vs. Robert Breslin
Steve Ramerez vs. Josh Green

4-Man Tournament:
Justin Levens vs. Jorge Oliveira
Tim McKenzie vs. Scott Smith

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SportFight: 'Rocky Mountain SportFight'
October 15th 2005
National Western Complex Stadium Arena
Denver, CO


Matt Horwich vs. John Cronk
Alex Schoenauer vs. Andre Walker
Noah Thomas vs. Vern Baca
Ian Loveland vs. Joe Doherty
Chilo Gonzales vs. Ed Banks
Lindsey Durlacher vs. Richard Hess
Joey Welch vs. Kyle Gibson
Luke Holdorf vs. Vellore Caballero

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Rickson Gracie


Rickson Gracie announced a new promotion he's helping to promote called 'The Budo Challenge'

Four fighters from different martial arts disciplines will be chosen for each of the six weight classes. Each weight class will have a single elimination tournament to decide its champion.

The event will take place in Los Angeles, California, from October 17th to the 21st. The following prize money will be awarded per weight division:

1st Place: USD$4,000;
2nd Place: USD$2,000;
3rd Place: USD$500 (two prizes)

Any interested fighters can contact the Budo Challenge Selection Committee in care of Kid Peligro at kidpeligro@gmail.com.

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Alexandre "Cacareco" Ferreira of the Brazilian Top Team.

Fight for Respect: 'Chute Boxe vs. Brazilian Top Team'
October 19th, 2005
Pavilhao Atlantico
Lisboa, Portugal


Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' reports that a Chute Boxe vs. Brazilian Top Team card will take place on October 19th in Portugal. The line-up will feature three representatives from each team facing off against each other:

Chute Boxe vs. BTT matchups (Chute Boxe fighters on left side):
Fabio Silva vs. Roan 'Jucao'
'Jamanta' vs. Alexandre 'Cacareco' Ferreira
Mauricio 'Veio' vs. Paulo Boiko

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"The Ultimate Fighter" and its homoerotic theme, such as the almost nude all male mud wrestling that it featured in a past episode, has failed to capture the more heterosexual audiences of the WWE and Monday Night Football.

'The Wrestling Observer' reports that the ratings for this past Monday night's head-to-head ratings war between the WWE and the UFC:


WWE: 'Raw': 4.0
UFC: 'Unleashed': 0.9
UFC: 'The Ultimate Fighter': 1.2


Both UFC shows went up against WWE: 'Raw', but could not manage to get above the 1.1 mark combined, and came nowhere close to competing with the WWE's phenomenal 4.0 rating.

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By Coffee Guy

Phil Baroni (far left), looking far bigger then he has in a long time, in his recent loss to Ikuhisa Minowa.

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

The following exclusive report was sent to us by our Zuffa informant called 'Coffee Guy':


"I was talking to Marc Laimon last week, and I asked him if Phil Baroni still trains there.

What he told me, almost verbatim, was that he had to kick Baroni out of the gym because Baroni was back on steroids, and, "he's a very different person when he's on that shit."

I asked him if anything specific had happened, and he said that Baroni is back to being a 100% asshole and that he will never allow him back at his place. He said that Baroni is by far the biggest ass that has ever come to his place. He assured me that there weren't any confrontations, and that Baroni always stayed respectful of him.

Also, Mark Coleman and others still train there and are still welcome."

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Mike Zambidis (left) on his way to knocking out Satoru Suzuki.

K-1 World Max 2005: 'Team Competition of World Champions'
October 12th, 2005
Yoyohi No. 1 Gymnasium
Japan


MMA matchups:
Yoshihiro Akiyama defeats Michael Lerma by TKO at 2:47, RD 1.
Hideo Tokoro defeats Gabriel Lemley by triangle choke at 0:12, RD 1.

K-1 matchups:
Andy Sauer defeats Kozo Takeda by KO at 0:31, RD 2.
Yoshihiro Sato defeats Kaoklai Kaennorsing by majority decision.
Albert Kraus defeats Akira Oohigashi by KO at 1:31, RD 2.
Mike Zambidis defeats Satoru Suzuki by KO at 1:17, RD 2.
Remigijus Morkevicius defeats Kazuya Yasuhiro by unanimous decision.
John Wayne Parr defeats Kinami by unanimous decision.
Hayato defeats 'Black Mamba' by KO at 0:40, RD 2.
Ian Schaffa defeats Akeomi Nitta by unanimous decision.
Shingo Garyu defeats Samir Berbachi by TKO at 1:11, RD 2.
Yuya Yamamoto defeats ASH-RA by unanimous decision.
Kazuki Hamasaki defeats Hakuto by KO at 2:30, RD 3.

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Fedor Emelianenko (left)

The following article appeared in The St. Petersburg Times, which is Russia's biggest english-language daily newspaper:


Russian Mixed Martial Arts Fighter Wins Fame and Fortune in the Caged Rings of Japan
By Yuriy Humber

He is one of Japan's most famous sporting heroes. Fans beg to know the smallest details of his diet, or how he met his wife. For millions, he is the modern embodiment of a samurai: strong, faithful, skilled, and contained. And he's Russian.

Fyodor Yemelyanenko (Fedor Emelianenko) , 29, has ruled the mixed martial arts cage of PRIDE, Japan's most popular combat tournament, for the last two years - its reigning champion since March 16, 2003. Yet, the man nicknamed "The Last Emperor," for he leaves the ring last - its ruler and its champion - is virtually unknown in his native country, though he says citizens of Stary Oskol, a town of some 200,000 people in central Russia where he was born, often stop him to shake hands.

In the PRIDE tournament, where bleeding noses are as regular inside the ring as popcorn is in the stands, the mere addition of Yemelyanenko's name to a fighting bill can guarantee crowds of over 50,000 people at the Tokyo Dome, even if entrance tickets start at $65 and cost up to $900 for VIP seats. Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi counts himself a fan. And the country's young businessmen turn woozy and girly in Yemelyanenko's presence and beg for his autograph.

When Yemelyanenko walks down Nevsky Prospekt he can relax. The fighter, 1.83 meters tall (6'0) , weighing 106 kilograms (233 pounds) and wearing a navy-blue tracksuit, is unlikely to draw much attention on the main street of St. Petersburg, a city the champion is about to move to from Stary Oskol.

"I don't mind that," Yemelyanenko said in an interview. "It makes life easier."

After all, his entry to the mixed fighting arena was not motivated by a search for fame, Yemelyanenko says. His motivation was far more basic.

"I had financial problems. I was in the Russian national squad for sambo and judo. But, we were facing severe financial restrictions; professional sport had absolutely no backing in terms of money," he said.

Years of training in self-defense and judo as a teenager, then weights, cross-country runs and extra workouts on top of army exercises during the obligatory two years of service, had molded Yemelyanenko into a top national athlete, winner of the European Sambo Championship in 1997, a runner-up and bronze medalist at three international judo tournaments in 1999.

"I entered my first competition, literally, a week out of the army," the fighter said. Within a couple of years Yemelyanenko earned the official Master of Sport qualification in judo and sambo, a Russian martial art that is close to judo.

"But after three years competing at the top level, the financial rewards were nothing to speak of. So, I had to search a little."

By then, Yemelyanenko had an extra motivation to spur on the search. In 1999, the athlete had decided to marry his childhood sweetheart, Oksana, and later in the same year became a dad, nursing a baby girl, which the couple named Maria. The fighter's personal story - tying the knot with a girl he met during a Pioneer summer camp, where Oksana acted as brigade leader and the teenage Yemelyanenko competed in a sports event - had much to do with propelling the fighter to celebrity status in Japan.

"The image of a caring father, which sometimes runs contrary to the traditional idea of a Japanese salaryman who is forever at work or at meetings with clients until late into the night, has been very important in capturing Asian audiences," said Yekaterina Korsakova, the Russian representative of Dream Stage Entertainment, or DSE, the company that has organized PRIDE since 1997.

"Japanese viewers see Fyodor (Yemelyanenko), watch the way PRIDE's combatants express their emotional side in the ring, and it fascinates them," she said.

"It's not just a fight pure and simple. The fighters' backgrounds play a vital role in telling the audience who it is that they are watching. Then, what unfolds in the huge arenas is an entertainment of a very high level, with multimedia, a wind-up of emotions, and of course the showdown. And that last part is definitely real. Just look at the blood," Korsakova said, pointing to one the magazines DSE publishes to promote the tournament in Japan and abroad.

Contrary to the barbaric image mixed fighting has inadvertently attracted, PRIDE maintains that their tournament has strict rules, "attempting to mimic the realities of an actual fight in the form of a legitimate and honorable sport," DSE says on its official web site.

The tournament, the most popular of several similar competitions running in Japan, presents fighters of mixed national and sports backgrounds, practicing a variety of styles from jujitsu to wrestling, in "a match that is still ultimately a sport."

Fighters ranging from the 2000 gold medalist in Greco-Roman wrestling, Rulon Gardner, to Brazilian Muay Thai champion Wanderlei Da Silva compete for three rounds, the first lasting 10 minutes, the last two 5 minutes, attempting to win with a technical knockout, through a judges' decision or an opponent's submission.

According to PRIDE rules, punching, kicking, wrestling, grappling, and choking are in. Biting, eye thumbing, head butting, attacking the groin, elbows to the head, pulling hair and attacking the back of the head are out.

In practice, Yemelyanenko said the rules are prone to "some digressions." After a pause, he adds, "in fact, quite often.”"

"There are some contestants that fight dirty, even attracting attention to themselves on this very basis," he said.

For fighters and wrestlers of traditional Olympic sports, in which illegal moves are strictly controlled and mean automatic disqualification, the biggest challenge in the caged ring is confidence, Yemelyanenko said. "Coming over to mixed fighting means starting from zero, means learning attacks and how to deliver blows," he said.

In 2000, after being spotted by Japanese scouts at a judo championship in Tula, which Yemelyanenko won, he was invited to take his wrestling skill to a Tokyo-based mixed fight tournament called RINGS, also managed by DSE. The RINGS event allows younger fighters and those with less experience to test their prowess in "a more sporty mixed martial arts tournament, [in which] you can't hit the opponent in the face," Yemelyanenko said.

For mixed fighting, the sambo champion studied new techniques. "I had to learn boxing, which was a completely new discipline for me. For a wrestler it is hard to accept. All life you grapple (with opponents), and then you have to switch to working in a lot of punches," Yemelyanenko said, speaking in a soft monotone.

When the fighter arrived for his first match in Japan, in May 2000, months of learning, training, exhaustive repetition of new maneuvers culminated in just a 12-second combat appearance. The fight involved one three-blow combination.

"When I walked out onto the ring I sensed that the opponent was a worse fighter than me. He moved slowly, kept his hands on his belt like a karate kid. I went in with a first attack and it was a knockout," he said.

Yemelyanenko went on to win the world crown of the RINGS tournament twice in 2001 and was consequently invited to join the senior-class PRIDE event. In less than five years, the Russian champion has recorded 22 wins, 1 loss, and 1 "no contest," when a match was annulled due to an accidental cut.

Yemelyanenko won two matches despite having his finger broken during the contest. "I thought it had been only sprained, and I didn't show it to the ring doctors," he said. Mixed fighters in the RINGS and PRIDE tournaments don't wear gloves as in boxing, but wear pads on the outside of their arm that allow for very high-impact blows. Cuts and bleeding noses are common.

Over the last four to five years, Yemelyanenko has picked up Muay Thai, kickboxing and persevered with boxing. Nonetheless, on his fighter's card the style still reads: "judo and sambo."

"A lot of what I learned from sambo and judo has stayed. Certainly all of the throws. (The skills) have just adapted," Yemelyanenko explained. "The main thing is that (mixed fight tournaments) are not an arena for a street fight or a brawl. The fighters involved are specialists in their field. And what they perform is their art."

The champion disagrees that such sporting entertainment necessarily encourages violence or influences youngsters to take to street brawls. The mixed fight tournaments pit "professional fighters against each other," Yemelyanenko said. "The contestants are thinking people with years of training behind them. They try to catch the rival out, show an audience their class, their style, and its specialty."

"In Japan, you sometimes see people bring little two-or three-year-olds to PRIDE matches. The sport has a lot of respect," he said.

Vadim Finkelshtein, a St. Petersburg-based entrepreneur who is the fighter's manager, said Yemelyanenko's success has brought recognition and respect to sambo, lifting the prestige of the Russian martial art around the world.

"Before Fyodor, who rated sambo abroad? Everyone thought jujitsu was the best martial art, because Brazilian fighters, (who regularly top PRIDE rankings) used it. Now, sambo has won respect," Finkelshtein said.

Yemelyanenko has not abandoned practicing his original style in its pure form. The fighter plans to travel to the Sambo World Championships in Prague this month, although admittedly it could be his last appearance as an amateur sportsman.

"My schedule with PRIDE is pretty full and takes away too much energy," Yemelyanenko said. This is also the reason the champion cites for having little to do with promoting sambo and mixed fighting tournaments in his native country.

"It's hard for many Russian fighters to get somewhere in professional tournaments such as PRIDE at the moment, which is why Fyodor's achievement merits him a heroic status," said Finkelshtein. "Most of the interested fighters are dotted around the country, they have little access to proper gyms or consistent training."

Only two mixed fight clubs operate in Russia: the St. Petersburg-based Red Devil, which Yemelyanenko belongs to and which is run by Finkelshtein, and Moscow-based Russia Top Team. Both clubs list 30 or more fighters, but very few are of tournament standard, PRIDE's Korsakova said.

While the success of Russian tennis players abroad has sparked off mass popularity for the sport at home, combat sports, apart from boxing, have had a slow response.

"The first (problem) is Russian television," Yemelyanenko said. "The media in Russia is not as developed as in Japan. There, the fans are very supportive. They want to know about their idols. They follow the sports very keenly - on TV, in the papers, on the Internet.

"If, in Russia, New Year is a time for broadcasting all kinds of glitz-glamour evenings or musical concerts, in Japan the majority of channels compete to show mixed martial art matches," he said.

Korsakova notes that the slow spread of Japan-based fighting tournaments to Europe and America is in part due to the caution with which the entertainment companies behind the sport test new markets.

"With the high cost of organizing a PRIDE fighting bill, it aims at a mass audience. And, of course, our company realizes it cannot immediately pack a Russian venue with 50,000 fans. That's if a venue that size exists in Russia," Korsakova said.

Meanwhile, the sport has found strong backing in North America, and is broadcast on cable TV in 11 European countries, about 20 countries in the Middle East and Africa, as well as New Zealand and parts of Southeast Asia.

Recent negotiations with Eurosport have resulted in the network agreeing to cover mixed martial art tournaments co-sponsored by PRIDE, which took place in St. Petersburg on Wednesday (Oct. 4) and in Holland in November.

"Except that Eurosport asked us for the fights to be held in a normal ring, not in a cage. For them, if it's in a ring then it's a real sport - in a cage it's not," Finkelshtein said. "Well, that's fine with us. We'll do without the cage."

As for Yemelyanenko, joined in the last few years in the PRIDE tournament by Alexander, the oldest of his two younger brothers, the aim is to continue competing and earn some more of the financial stability he sought at the beginning. In Japan, product endorsement and TV advertising revenues often double the wages of popular sporting heroes, and Yemelyanenko has no qualms about letting the years of tough fighting pay off handsomely.

"If people know me, they want to see products with my name on them. Globally, (Fyodor Yemelyanenko as a brand) has only started to develop as an image and an industry."

"I always dreamed of realizing myself as a sportsman," Yemelyanenko said. "Now, I do work that I love and it pays."

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DSE/PRIDE president Nobuyuki Sakakibara with a top official from FSN.

A new episode of 'The PRIDE Fighting Championships' program will be shown on Fox Sports Net this Sunday, October 16th, at 9:00 P.M. local time.

Included in this upcoming episode are fights featuring Fedor Emelianenko, Ken Shamrock, Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson, Kazushi Sakuraba, Aleksander Emelianenko, Kevin Randleman, and James Thompson.

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The homoerotic theme of "The Ultimate Fighter", featuring challenges such as almost all nude male mud wrestling (pictured), has failed to capture a more heterosexual, and thus larger, audience this mseason.

Ratings analyst Dave Scherer reports that the ratings for the second season of 'The Ultimate Fighter' continue to slide, with this week's episode pulling a 1.2 rating.

Scherer also added that the 'The Ultimate Fighter Unleashed', which came on right before The Ultimate Fighter, did even worse, pulling a 0.9 rating.

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Paulo Filho (center) submitting Ryuta Sakurai.

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' recently interviewed Paulo Filho. Here's what Filho had to say (interview by Andre Araujo):


Tatame: It seems like you didn't have too much trouble in your fight against Ryuta Sakurai. Were you concerned with him before the fight?

Filho: He's really heavy handed. He tried a keylock on the floor, but I think he got scared to stay there. I was really calm, and on the ground I tried a keylock and he escaped. Then I took him down with a single leg, he got scared, tried to release himself, and gave up his back. I punched him a little bit and then submitted him. It was absolutely one of the easiest fights I've had in PRIDE. I was really calm.

Tatame: After beating your opponent, were you wishing somebody gets hurt, so that you'd be able to fight in the GP?

Filho: I didn't have any expectations. Basically, because if one of the fighters got injured after fighting, the loser of the fight would replace the one who got injured. So in order to get a place in the GP, both the winner and loser of a fight would have to get injured, and that doesn't happen very often.

Tatame: A few days ago, Chute Boxe's leader Rudimar Fedrigo said he and his team would be rooting for Murilo Bustamante in the GP final. What do you have to say about this?

Filho: I think it's very nice of Rudimar Fedrigo. If it's for real, then it's a good thing if he roots for Murilo Bustamante in the final. I think it's great. I will not make any controversial statements about it. Whoever does not like Murilo does not like anybody. Once Daniel Acacio was eliminated from the finals, I don't see any reason why he wouldn't root for the remaining Brazilian guy.

Tatame: You usually fight at 205 pounds. How do you feel fighting at 185 pounds?

Filho: Well, it does not matter for me. I fight well in both divisions. My natural weight is 94 kg (207 pounds), but I felt good fighting at this lighter weight. However, I prefer to fight at my natural weight.

Tatame: This was the last fight of your PRIDE contract. What are your plans now?

Filho: It was the last fight of my contract with PRIDE. However, I recently signed another contract, and I will do another fight before the end of the year.

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Kultar 'Black Mamba' Gil

Canadian MMA fighter and kickboxer Kultar Gil, who originally hails from India, is the fighter who's been competing in K-1 Max under the name of 'Black Mamba'.

He is scheduled to face Hayato on tomorrow's K-1 Max card in Japan.

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Mike Zambidis (left) knocking out Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto.

K-1 World Max 2005: 'Team Competition of World Champions'
October 12th, 2005
Yoyohi No. 1 Gymnasium
Japan

Andy Sauer vs. Kozo Takeda
Mike Zambidis vs. Satoru Suzuki
Albert Kraus vs. Akira Oohigashi
Remigijus Morkevicius vs. Kazuya Yasuhiro
Hayato vs. 'Black Mamba'

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Alexandre "Pequeno" Nogueira

The Brazilian media reports that Alexandre 'Pequeno' Nogueira will have knee surgery for a torn meniscus.

He'll be out of action for the rest of 2005, but will return to the ring in early 2006 for his SHOOTO title defense against Gilbert Melendez.

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Almost nude male mud wrestling was featured prominently on last week's episode of "The Ultimate Fighter".

Due to the homoerotic theme of 'The Ultimate Fighter' reality show, we have contracted grappling enthusiast Andrew Bryant, who is also MMA's only known admitted homosexual insider, to write up our weekly review of the show:


"Let me start off with saying that I caught the Rich Franklin-centric episode of "UFC: Unleased" that aired before this episode of The Ultimate Fighter. Here's a few random thoughts, in no particular order:


- There is no way in hell I would have handled having Franklin as a high school teacher. Trust me, I was just as raunchy then, just younger.

- Edwin Dewees is never going to look older than fifteen years old. Well, maybe when he's forty. Maybe.

- I still love you Ken Shamrock!

- Sadly, by the end of his title fight with Franklin, Evan Tanner really looked like he could have been a decent stand in for the Beast in the "Beauty and the Beast" TV series from the '80s.

- Mrs. Rich Franklin is one lucky girl.


And now for my review of "The Ultimate Fighter: Season Two' Episode 8". It actually gets to start on the hour now instead of anywhere between the 5 and 15 minute mark!

As usual, we get a recap of last weeks episode and fight. Poor Seth and the groin shots. Though not nearly as bad as poor Legionaire Alessio Sakara from the last PPV. I'm really not approving of the new facial hair though, kinda looks like velcro.

As soon as the teams get back to the house, Team Franklin attacks Team Hughes with water balloons. This soon turns into an all out war between the two teams that involves mustard, a watermelon, and ketchup in some really unmentionable places.

This is why I love Team Franklin, they are so much fun. I'm really turned on by the fact that they seem to think squirting ketchup down your housemate's shorts is a good idea.

This week's challenge is "Randy says", which consists of the svelt welterweights hitting punching bags with whatever combo Randy says. Its like "Simon Says", where Randy actually has to say, "Randy says", LOL. This rule catches Jason in the first round, and Anthony gets confused by the 20 million different number combinations he is given. Team Hughes wins.

Gotta love the award bribing. This is otherwise known as the "we really don't like the idea of anyone forfeiting" prize.

Team Hughes celebrates with their new video games in one of the back rooms. Great, last season the guys were so desperate for females that they flocked to the poor ring girls in the kitchen. This year they flock to the virtual girls on the video game. This does not bode well for next season's guys. Personally, I think they should bring me in as entertainment for the guys next season, LOL.

Day 28

It's decided that the fight will be Luke vs. Anthony. Franklin trades Brad to Team Hughes, and Sammy gives Anthony advice on fighting Luke.

Team Hughes training: Hughes thinks Luke will win if they stay standing. When did they start with a $5,000.00 winning bonus? Have I just been oblivious to it or is this like when they got the video games? "We're not happy with they way things are going so we will bribe you into doing better", LOL.

Day 30

Weigh-in: Luke 169; Anthony 169 1/2

Luke's pre-fight meal consists of wild rice, celery, garlic and kelp, but it looks like mulch to me. That should be out on someone's roses, not in the kitchen.

Day 31

Luke (looking like he's going to rob a bank with his mask) and Anthony (looking like he thinks its going to rain in the gym with his jacket) come out for the fight. Luke, that mask is not going to turn you into a Super Stealth Ninja. Take it off now, LOL.

Round 1: Intially gets started slowly as the two just circle each other and don't do much else for the first few seconds. Anthony then takes Luke down and and there's a hell of a lot of exchanged punches and elbows. Anthony gets behind Luke for a brief second, but like an inmate fighting to save his anus, Luke is able to reverse it and gain the dominant position.

Round 2: Luke pretty much dominates like a man until Anthony gets his back and almost gets sinks in a rear naked choke. He can't lock it in, though, and Luke once again takes over. Luke is seriously dominating with the elbows at the end of the round.

Round 3: Anthony is looking pretty winded at the begining of the round, lots of punches are thrown with Luke still dominating like a man. Luke busts Anthony open above the eyebrow and the doctors check on it, but decide that he can continue. The fight goes to the time limit and the judges unanimously give the win to Luke.

Final thoughts: Fun episode, I liked the food fight, disapointed that Franklin's team lost again, but not overwhelmingly so. I really hope that Mike's "I am the bestest" act from the preview is just selective editing, otherwise he loses points.

Finally, that was not an a good "unbelievable" look from Dana in next week's preview. Must be one big shitfest of a fight. And I still want to hit Matt Hughes with a stick, sometimes with the one in my pants, and all the time with a one made of steel."

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Murilo Bustamante

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' recently interviewed Murilo Bustamante. Here's what Bustamante had to say (interview by Eduardo Ferreira):


Tatame: Did you encounter any difficulties during your two fights in the PRIDE 185-pound GP?

Bustamante: It was much easier then I expected. It was a good night for me. I trained very well, and I was with a clear mind leading up to the fights. Well, I can tell you that I was very hungry to fight. When I first engaged with Suda I could feel that it was going to be my night.

Tatame: The spin punch that Masanori Suda applied, did it hurt you?

Bustamante: It hit my nose. It was a little knockdown, but it was not the same as getting hit in the chin. I fell down being fully aware and defending. So much so, that I was already attacking his arm and submitted him.

Tatame: Was it difficult to fight against an ex-teammate?

Bustamante: Minowa spent a few months training with us in 2003. I wish I have to fight him, but it was a tournament and I was obliged to face him. If it was just a single fight, then I would rather fight someone else.

Tatame: How important is it for your career and for the Brazilian Top Team to have a PRIDE 185-pound GP?

Bustamante: It's important. This is the first PRIDE 185-pound GP and BTT is in the final representing Brazil. We have a chance to capture this belt and make history.

Tatame: You and Dan Henderson have already fought once in PRIDE and the result was controversial. At the time, you asked for a rematch and he did not want to give to you. Will this factor make the GP final against him more interesting?

Bustamante: For sure it will be a great fight, but not just because of our first fight. For me, the first fight did not count. That history will end now. I've been dreaming about this fight ever since the head butt, and he did not give me the rematch. I rooted for him to reach the final so that we can fight each other again. Whether I won or not, I will do a great fight. The biggest winner will be the fans on December 31st.

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Michael DiSanto

Miguel Itturate (who is the co-promoter of the AFC, MFC, and 'Euphoria') made the following post on the UG forum, regarding reputed internet MMA media backstabber Micheal DiSanto:

Actually, I went to inside fighting last night, cause I wanted to know what Faircloth did (They stole him from me, you know, he waa signed for 11/5) and they had nothing!

Michael Disanto was too busy playing with the urine samples at UFC - he loves that piss! Allegedly, he likes to rub it on his skin, it makes his skin feel 'soft'... -Miguel Itturate


When asked about how Micheal DiSanto allegedly backstabbed the internet MMA media, Itturate posted the following:

"I dont know, it is all 'alleged'. Michael did send e-mails rallying the media against UFC, and then firmly went to the UFC camp as a traitor" -Miguel Itturate

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'The Wrestling Observer' confirmed what Fightsport.com first reported on October 7th, that UFC announcer Mike Goldberg has apparently decided to turn down an offer from the WWE that would have seen him replace Jim Ross as the lead announcer on WWE: 'Raw'.

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Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor Emelianenko recently did a Q&A on his website with with his fans. Here is the entire Q&A (translation by Igor S.):


Fedor: Good afternoon! First I would like to thank all those who wished me a happy birthday. I am ready to answer all of your questions.

Question: How much longer do you plan on competing in MMA?

Fedor: Until I have serious injuries and while my genetics allow me to achieve new victories.

Question: What are your thoughts on Andrei Arlovski?

Fedor: We don't really know each other and that's why I can't say anything specific. However, it feels good that a representative of the former USSR is the UFC champion.

Question: What is the future of MMA in Europe and the former USSR?

Fedor: I think that in the near future MMA will grow in popularity throughout Europe. Let's hope that MMA's popularity will grow in Russia as well. By the way, Pride is planning to hold Bushido in Holland this October and there are plans in the works to hold a similar even in St. Petersburg.

Question: After your rematches with Cro Cop and Nogueira, if you win, will you consider dropping down to light heavyweight to seek out new challenges?

Fedor: In the first place, there has been no talk of rematches yet. Second, I will not drop down to light heavy.

Question: Who will win, Hunt or Kharitanov? Is the winner the likely number one contender for your belt?

Fedor: In my opinion, if Kharitanov picks the right strategy he will win. As for the number one contender, that is up to Pride.

Question: What are Fedja's (short for Fedor) plans in Pride?

Fedor: To remain the champ. :)

Question: Why is there no up and comers in Russia? Besides Kharitanov and your brother, there are no famous Russian fighters that give great promise?

Fedor: There are up and comers and the new generation of boys are showing great promise.

Question: Will you have your own fight team?

Fedor: A team is already forming. The home base will likely be in St. Petersburg where a special sports complex is already on the way to being built. The team will consist of fighters from Kislovodsk and those from Tulisk that are not part of RTT. We are looking for candidates from all of Russia.

Question: After you beat Mirco, how did you thank your Dutch trainers?

Fedor: My victory was the biggest thanks that I could give them.

Question: Have there been any proposals from movie producers?

Fedor: Yes, from a few Russian producers but just guest appearances. If there is anything serious I will consider it.

Question: What did the Pride Promoters have to say to you after your fight with Mirco?

Fedor: They congratulated me but were not very happy with the way the fight went. Their smiles were fake.

Question: Do you have any plans on teaching Sambo in the USA, Europe, or Japan?

Fedor: There have been offers but right now I only have time to conduct brief seminars.

Question: Were you ever asked to do a work for a huge amount of money?

Fedor: No one ever asked me to do a work.

Question: To fans recognize you on the street and rush upon you?

Fedor: Yes, especially in Japan.

Question: Where can I obtain the same t-shirt you wore while in France?

Fedor: There is a magazine called Faitsport in France. It handles the marketing of products with my brand.

Question: You are golden boy of the entire nation. Any nation should be proud to have people like you. Why do you only have one child?

Fedor: Everything is still to come.

Question: Did you get into many fights when you were a kid?

Fedor: Yes, before I started training in Sambo and Judo. After that there were a few fights while I was in the army.

Question: In all of your fights, did you ever fight an opponent who bent the rules?

Fedor: Sure, just look at my last fight with Noguira and Mirko. Both of them utilized foul strikes to the back of the head.

Question: Will you visit Poland in the near future?

Fedor: There was never any talk to set up any seminar in Poland but I would be willing to go if someone would set it up.

Question: I have read that you wish to ran as a candidate for the city parliament. How will you balance that and your MMA career? Politics do take up a lot of time.

Fedor: Like any other member of the city parliament, I will have many aids who, in my absence, will have the ability to decide all the necessary questions.

Question: Is there a fighter whom you would be scared to fight?

Fedor: No.

Question: How did you begin your MMA carrer?

Fedor: I fought in Tuli, with a Georgian Fighter Livan Lagvilavom, in a tournament of top Russian fighters agains top Georgian fighters.

Question: Many of us saw the post card drawing which you made. Have you ever painted a full sized painting?

Fedor: No, I never tried to paint one.

Question: After the fight with Cro Cop, who was the first one to call and congratulate you?

Fedor: Oh there were so many calls I can't remember who got through first.

Question: What is your favorite sport other than MMA?

Fedor: As a spectator, I love the performance of any athlete as long as he or she are of the highest level (Unlike the Russian soccer team).

Question: Will you shoot a documentary about your training and personal life?

Fedor: There is one such project in the works right now. An instructional is also planned.

Question: Will you shoot a documentary about your training and personal life?

Fedor: There is one such project in the works right now. An instructional is also planned.

Question: How did your hand surgery go?

Fedor: It was postponed until January 2006

Question: I read that you will run for the city parliament. What prompted this move?

Fedor: The administration of Stari Oskol wanted me to run.

Question: When will your next fight take place?

Fedor: Plans are for the 31st of December.

Question: When is Alex's next fight?

Fedor: 9th of October in Rotterdam Holland

Question: Earlier, you said that you plan to fight until you are 35 years old. Does this still hold true?

Fedor: Time will tell but thats the plan.

Question: I read that Sergei Kharitanov stoped speaking to you. What is the current situation between you two?

Fedor: The situation is the same.

Question: Will you give Mirco a rematch?

Fedor: Whatever the promoters will decide. Personally, I would love to.

Question: In you opinion, what would be the strongest and most dangerous opponent you could possible fight in MMA?

Fedor: That would be my brother Alex.

Question: Do you speak any English?

Fedor: A little bit.

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