UFC 197: Rumored to Feature McGregor/RDA and Holm/Tate

Who wins in a potential fight?

Rafael dos Anjos

Conor McGreggor

polling

Who wins in a potential fight?

Holly Holm

Miesha Tate

Quiz Maker

The MMA world is buzzing about the news of a possible headliner and co-headliner between some of the UFC's biggest stars.  It has been rumored that the UFC soon be announcing title fights between UFC Lightweight Champion, Rafael do Anjos, and UFC Featherweight Champion, Conor McGregor at UFC 197 in March.  Rumors are also spreading that Holly Holm will be defending her UFC Womens' Bantamweight Championship against longtime contender and former Strikeforce Champion, Miesha Tate.  The fight has yet to be confirmed by the UFC, but sources are confident that these two title fights will be happening.  Stay posted to Tough Spar MMA for the latest news regarding this fight on our Facebook Page Tough Spar MMA and our Twitter @Toughsparmma.

UFC in Fox 11: Event Results

Main Card:

Fabricio Werdum def. Travis Browne via unanimous decision
Miesha Tate def. Liz Carmouche via unanimous decision
Donald Cerrone def. Edson Barboza via submission (rear-naked choke)
Yoel Romero def. Brad Tavares via unanimous decision

Preliminary Card:

Khabib Nurmagomedov def. Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision
Thiago Alves def. Seth Baczynski via unanimous decision
Jorge Masvidal def. Pat Healy via unanimous decision
Alex White def. Estevan Payan via first-round TKO
Caio Magalhaes def. Luke Zachrich via first-round TKO
Jordan Mein def. Hernani Perpetuo via split decision
Dustin Ortiz def. Ray Borg via split decision
Mirsad Bektic def. Chas Skelly via majority decision
Derrick Lewis def. Jack May via first-round TKO

UFC on Fox 11: Weigh-in Results

Main Card:

Fabricio Werdum (232.5) vs. Travis Browne (245.5)
Liz Carmouche (135) vs. Miesha Tate (135.5)
Edson Barboza (156) vs. Donald Cerrone (155.5)
Yoel Romero (185.5) vs. Brad Tavares (185)

Preliminary Card:

Khabib Nurmagomedov (155.5) vs. Rafael dos Anjos (155.5)
Seth Baczynski (170.5) vs. Thiago Alves (170.5)
Pat Healy (156) vs. Jorge Masvidal (155.5)
Alex White (146) vs. Estevan Payan (146)
Luke Zachrich (185.5) vs. Caio Magalhaes (185.5)
Hernani Perpetuo (170.5) vs. Jordan Mein (170.5)
Ray Borg (125.5) vs. Dustin Ortiz (125.5)
Chas Skelly (145) vs. Mirsad Bektic (146)
Jack May (252.5) vs. Derrick Lewis (256)

UFC 168: Ronda Rousey vs. Miesha Tate

For your viewing pleasure UFC.com has featured the UFC 168 title fight between Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate that earned them Fight of the Night honors, to get us ready for UFC 170.  Enjoy:

Tate and Carmouche Meet at UFC on Fox 11

Contrary to the opinion Matt 'the Immortal' Brown, WMMA keeps getting better and more interesting as the days go by as former Stikeforce Women's Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate and Liz Carmouche are set to do battle at UFC on Fox 11on April 19th in Florida.

Carmouche and Tate both share a loss to the current queen of the 135 lb division, Ronda Rousey. Tate desperately needs a win against Carmouche as she is 0-2 since the UFC has brought in the women's Bantamweight division. Carmiuche is in a similar boat in which she needs a win as well at 1-2 in the UFC. It will be a scrappy bout between two of the best in women's MMA.

Miesha Tate Would Fight Rousey 100 Times if Allowed

The UFC's Miesha Tate recently went to war with UFC Champ Ronda Rousey this past December and even though she has now lost to Rousey twice, Tate is still willing to go to war with her as many times as Dana White will allow her to. She stated that even if she lost 99 of the 100 times she would still go to war with Rousey even if it is not for the title.

I would be willing to watch Tate and rousey clash at least five of those hundred times considering Tate was able to last longer against Rousey than her first attempt and the attempt of any other of Rousey's opponents. Rousey and Tate have a legitimate feud that fed both of the competitors to become better fighters and it was evident when they clashed at UFC 168. Tate has admitted to not feeling 100% in her fight with Tate. Imagine what would've occured had we had a 100% Miesha in the cage with Rousey.

5 Female UFC Stars Make Maxim Hot 100 List

Maxim has began compiling their annual Hot 100 List and 5 UFC stars need your votes for the list.  Ring Girls: Arrianny Celeste and Brittany Palmer, fighters: Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate and UFC program host Kenda Perez all made the list.  You can vote at http://www.maxim.com/hot100/2014 to make sure they all make it high on the list.

Who gets your top vote on Maxim's Top 100 list

Ronda Rousey

Miesha Tate

Arriany Celeste

Brittany Palmer

Kenda Perez

Poll Maker

Tito Invites Tate to Help Train with Cyborg

By way of Twitter, Cristiane "Cyborg" Justino's manager Tito Ortiz called Miesha Tate out asking for Tate to help he and Cyborg train for her next bout. Right now the current Invicta FC Featherweight champ doesn't have a fight scheduled but the invitation was still extended. Tat simply replied with "anytime." Not long before Tate's fight at UFC 168, Cyborg offered to help Tate train for Rousey via Twitter.

The two of them have the potential to form a Velasquez-Cormier type of partnership if the two of them could become allies. Both women are arguably top ten WMMA pound-for-pound fighters and would be a force to be reckoned with if they ever come together for training. It makes one wonder if Cyborg has found a way to cut down to 135 to eventually get at Rousey, despite Cyborg claiming that she medically couldn't do so. If we eventually got to see Cyborg in the UFC at 135 lbs we would be in for a treat.

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UFC 168: Salaries

Main Card:

Chris Weidman ($200,000 + $200,000 =
$400,000) def. Anderson Silva
($600,000)
Ronda Rousey ($50,000 + $50,000 =
$100,000) def. Miesha Tate ($28,000)
Travis Browne ($28,000 + $28,000 =
$56,000) def. Josh Barnett ($170,000)
Jim Miller ($46,000 + $46,000 = $92,000)
def. Fabricio Camoes ($8,000)
Dustin Poirier ($23,000 + $23,000 =
$46,000) def. Diego Brandao ($20,000)

Preliminary Card:

Uriah Hall ($10,000 + $10,000 = $20,000)
def. Chris Leben ($51,000)
Michael Johnson ($18,000 + $18,000 =
$36,000) def. Gleison Tibau ($39,000)
Dennis Siver ($33,000 + $33,000 =
$66,000) def. Manny Gamburyan
($25,000)
John Howard ($16,000 + $16,000 =
$32,000) def. Siyar Bahadurzada
($17,000)
William Macario ($10,000 + $10,000 = $20,000) def. Bobby Voelker ($12,000)
Robert Peralta ($12,000 + $12,000 =
$24,000) def. Estevan Payan ($10,000)

UFC 168: Recap

Despite UFC 167 being the 20th anniversary for the UFC, tonight's event had just as much pressure to be a five-star event.  The main card featured a night in which there was not a single fight that went the distance.  Also in the prelims we got a chance to see Uriah Hall rise back from the brink of being cut to making Leben quit between rounds.

The first fight on the main card was between Dustin Poirier and Diego Brandao.  It was a fight in which Dustin Poirier used great speed in his stand-up game which eventually got him the victory via TKO due to strikes.  It would be a great match to see him face off against Frankie Edgar after he faces Penn or possibly in a rematch against Cub Swanson who beat him via unanimous decision.  Another option for Poirier would be a clash with fellow UFC 168 winner, Dennis Siver, who defeated Manny Gamburyan by decision in the prelims.

Next on the card was a fight in the lightweight divison in which Jim Miller took on Fabricio Camoes.  Miller was able to submit Camoes off of his back with an armbar in the first round.  I think a good fight to make for Miller would be against Donald Cerrone if he beats Martins in there clash early 2014.

The evening kept rolling with another fight in the UFC's Heavyweight Division.  Travis Browne and Josh Barnett met in the center of the Octagon and instantly went to work.  Travis Browne got the better of the stand-up striking exchanges which led Barnett to look for a takedown.  While Barnett shot for the take down and pressed Browne against the cage, Browne landed a knee and a series of elbow strikes to the side of Barnett's head, which left him out cold.  Dana White has already announced that Browne's next opponent will be submission specialist, Fabricio Werdum.

The next match was the most exciting fight of the evening in the first title fight of the night, Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate.  Tate and Rousey came out swinging to the fences as soon as the fight began. Both women were landing clean shots until the fight inevitably went to the ground.  For three rounds, Rousey and Tate scrambled on the ground for position.  There were times that Tate was in conntrol and Rousey and vise-versa.  It took Ronda Rousey five armbar attempts at the armbar before the final one was enough for Tate to tap in the third.  Miesha Tate's grappling defense was one of the best performances of submission defense that I have seen in a long time.  Tate gave Rousey her toughest fight in her MMA career.  The fight between Rousey and Tate was just as exciting if not more exciting as the inaugural UFC Women's Bantamweight title fight.  After the fight, Dana White announced that Rousey would be returning to action very shortly to headline the UFC 170 card and defend her title against Sara McMann.  It will feature two Olympic medalists from the same year fighting for the UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship.

The main event was between Chris Weidman and Anderson Silva who both had a lot to prove in their fight.  For Weidman it was an opportunity to prove that his first victory wasn't a fluke.  For Silva it was an opportunity to prove that he could beat the only man to beat him in the UFC.  As soon as Silva came out to exactly the same song that he used at UFC 162, it felt like deja vu.  Anderson Silva was in the blue corner for the first time since he won the title at UFC 64.  When the fight began Weidman was able to get a takedown early in the first round.  Silva was able to get back up instantly but was forced to get into a clinching situation with Weidman.  Weidman got the better of the clinch game and eventually dropped Silva and controlled him with great ground and pound from the guard.  Silva was able to use his jiu jitsu in order to survive the barrage of punches until the round ended.  In the second round we saw Silva get looser on his feet and began to look more comfortable.  The second wouldn't last that long as Silva threw two kicks that would seal his fate.  The first one he threw was speculated to have fractured his leg when it was checked by Weidman and the second one thrown broke Silva's leg.

Chris Weidman successfully defended his UFC Middleweight Championship via TKO by way of checked leg kick.  Vitor Belfort will be the next man to face Weidman for the belt.  This could be the last time that we saw Anderson Silva in the UFC.  We hope to see a healthy Anderson Silva whether he fights again or not.

UFC 168: Post Fight Bonuses

The UFC has released its results for the post fight bonuses for UFC 168 and here they are:

Fight of the Night Bonus: Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate

Submission of the Night Bonus: Ronda Rousey

Knockout of the Night Bonus: Travis Browne

UFC 168 Results

Main Card:

Chris Weidman def. Anderson Silva due to injury (leg fracture) Round 2
Ronda Rousey def. Meisha Tate via submission Round 3
Travis Browne def. Josh Barnett via TKO (elbow strikes) Round 1
Jim Miller def. Fabricio Camoes via submission (armbar) Round 1
Dustin Poirier def. Diego Brandao via TKO (punches) Round 1

Preliminary Card:

Uriah Hall def. Chris Leben via TKO (corner stoppage) Round 1
Michael Johnson def. Gleison Tibau via KO (punches) Round 1
Dennis Siver def. Manny Gamburyan via unanimous decision
John Howard def. Siyar Bahadurzada via unanimous decision
William Macario Patolino def. Bobby Voelker via unanimous decision
Robbie Peralta def. Estevan Payan via KO (punches) Round 3
145 lbs.: Estevan Payan vs. Robbie Peralta -- Peralta wins by KO (punches) - 0:12 rd. 3

UFC 168: Weigh-in Results

Main Card:

UFC Middleweight Championship: Chris Weidman (184) vs. Anderson Silva (185)
UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship: Ronda Rousey (135) vs. Miesha Tate (135)
Josh Barnett (252) vs. Travis Browne (242)
Jim Miller (156) vs. Fabrício Camões (156)
Dustin Poirier (146) vs. Diego Brandao (153)

Preliminary Card:

Chris Leben (185.5) vs. Uriah Hall (185)
Gleison Tibau (156) vs. Michael Johnson (156)
Dennis Siver (145) vs. Manvel Gamburyan (146)
John Howard (171) vs. Siyar Bahadurzada (171)
William Patolino (171) vs. Bobby Voelker (171)
Robbie Peralta (145.5) vs. Estevan Payan (145)

UFC 168: Extended Preview

Will Anderson Silva be able to win his title back from Chris Weidman?--Tough Spar MMA

Yes--he will do it in impressive fashion

Yes--he will do so, but it will be a tough fight

No--Weidman will finish him again

No--Weidman by decision

Poll Maker

UFC 168: Best Friends Trailer

A fun teaser of Tate and Rousey a week before the actually fight

Cat Zingano Targeting a May 2014 Return

Who remembers Cat Zingano? I do! For anyone who doesn't, Cat Zingano was originally cast to coach opposite of Ronda Rousey on TUF 18.

On April 13, 2013, Cat Zingano went to war with the #2 135 lb Woman in the world, Miesha Tate.  The two of them fought hard for three rounds in the Octagon with Tate likely winning the first two rounds before Zingano stopped her in the third round due to knee strikes. With a victory she was tapped to be the other coach for the next TUF season and a title shot at the end of the season.  Unfortunately for Zingano she sustained a serious knee injury that put her on the sidelines and opened the door for Tate to step in and coach in her place. 

For months and months Zingano has been nursing her injured knee so she could get back into title contention. She now has updated her twitter account saying that she should be ready for battle again in May of 2014.  She hopes to face the winner of the current title fight set to take place this month between Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate?

Technically Zingano has already earned her title shot, but I feel that she should take a warm-up fight before immediately challenging for a title shot upon her return especially considering the fact that ahe didn't have an easy time getting through Tate in their match. We couldnt expect her to truly pose a threat to Rousey if she can not keep herself out of trouble by getting out-grappled. I think the best opponent for Zingano upon her return would be against Alexis Davis who absolutely looked phenomenal against former title challenger, Liz Carmouche. Davis felt she was ready for a title match after her victory at UFC Fight for the Troops not long ago.  I say the UFC should pit the two of them together and let the winner get the next title shot after UFC 168.

Cyborg Offers to Aid Tate in Defeating Rousey

Invicta FC Featherweight Champion and highly respected Muay Thai practioner, Cris Cyborg in a recent tweet has offered to play a part in the UFC 168 co-main event involving a UFC Bantamweight Championship fight between Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate.  By way of Twitter, Cyborg has reached out to Tate and offered to train with the title challenger to help her take down the current Champ, Ronda Rousey.  Before Liz Carmouche was ever set to compete against Ronda Rousey in the first ever UFC fight involving female competitors, the UFC was trying to put together a fight between the current UFC Champ and the current Invicta FC Champ.  Cyborg was pretty much guaranteed a spot in the UFC, but Cyborg insisted that she could not medically make 135 lbs.  Many believe that Cyborg is the only true threat to Rousey in WMMA.  It would be interesting to see the two of them clash in the future, but as for now it is all speculation. I think Cyborg would possibly destroy Rousey on the feet with no fear of the ground considering that she has a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

Davey Grant Joins the UFC Roster

Despite losing an entertaining fight to the Chris Holdsworth, Davey Grant has been added as a fighter in the UFC's Mens' Bantamweight Division.  He confirmed the news via Twitter stating that he was getting a contract with the UFC.

I think that it was a wise decision for them to go ahead and and bring Grant to the UFC  considering how unexciting the UFC's Bantamweight Division is. The division has a champion who has stood on top of the division without even fighting in it for two years. The Bantamweight division is the only division that the word 'blah' comes to mind and doing TUF for that division was the best move for the company to bring in some great talent and Grant is one of those great talents.

TUF 18 Finale Weigh-in Results

MAIN CARD:

Nate Diaz (156) vs. Gray Maynard (156)
Julianna Pena (134) vs. Jessica Rakoczy (132)
Davey Grant (135) vs. Chris Holdsworth (136)
Jessamyn Duke (135.5) vs. Peggy Morgan (136)
Roxanne Modafferi (134) vs. Raquel Pennington (135)

PRELIMINARY CARD:

Maximo Blanco (146) vs. Akira Corassani (146)
Tom Niinimaki (145) vs. Rani Yahya (145.5)
Walter Harris (244) vs. Jared Rosholt (240)
Drew Dober (170) vs. Sean Spencer (171)
Ryan Benoit (126) vs. Joshua Sampo (127.5)