Kimbo Slice vs Roy "Big Country" Nelson

Tonight we will see one of the biggest fights ever on UFC. It will be televised and it is Kimbo Slice vs Roy Nelson. Kimbo's drawing power is huge and tonight we will find out if he will survive in the UFC as he takes on the most experienced fighter in the ultimate fighter (maybe any ultimate fighter ever). It will almost definitely be one of the biggest shows ever on Spike television. Kimbo's ground game will probably be tested but he needs to do serious damage in his striking to win this fight. Spoilers on the web indicate that he won but we'll need to watch tonight to know for sure.

Floyd Mayweather vs Juan Manuel Marquez Generates One Million PPV Buys

The pay per view numbers are in for Floyd Mayweather vs Juan Manuel Marquez and it was a huge success by all accounts. The pay per view sold one million buys making it one of the top five all time boxing events based on PPV numbers. For Mayweather, this makes for almost a perfect comeback as he pitched a shutout in the fight itself as well.

It's also great news for boxing which is still thriving post Oscar De La Hoya and is poised for another big night when Manny Pacquiao takes on Miguel Cotto. It will be interesting to see if that fight can generate similar PPV numbers. There are still a lot of big fights that can be made after Cotto-Pacquiao is done so we should see some big numbers next year as well.

Vitali Klitschko Dissects Cris Arreola

It wasn't to be for Cristobal Arreola as he was thoroughly dominated by Vitali Klitschko in their heavyweight tilt. Klitschko followed his game plan masterfully and stayed out of Arreola's range while using his jab and straight right hand effectively to continually pummel Cris. Cris' trainer ended the fight after the tenth since it was proving very hard for Arreola to get inside against Vitali and he was just taking a lot of punishment.

It's hard to say where Vitali goes from here but he can keep making good money in the business and he seems to be in top form. There aren't too many serious challengers out there for the Klitschko brothers at the moment. David Haye seems to be the biggest box office fight but he needs to establish himself in the division as a legitimate challenger first. Eventually, someone will come along to challenge the Klitschko rule at the top of the division but for now we'll have to be content with Wladimir and Vitali's domination of the division.

Cristobal Arreola versus Vitali Klitschko

Tonight Cris Arreola will try to pull off the upset of Vitali Klitschko in a heavyweight tilt. It may be a bit early for Cris but he needs to step up as there is little other competition in the heavyweight division at the moment for the Klitschkos. Arreola will try to use his savvy boxing skills to land bombs on Vitali and get inside in the process. Klitschko will try to stay on the outside and use his monstrous jab to wear down Arreola. Klitshcko is 6-7 and weighed in at 252 pounds for the weigh in while Arreola is 6-4 and weighed in at 251 pounds. If Arreola is in good shape and has the energy to keep pushing Klitshcko he may be able to make a fight of it. Although Klitshcko has demonstrated a decent chin in the past, Arreola clearly has knockout power at the heavyweight level and I think he has enough to surprise Klitschko if the giant Ukranian is not careful. The fight should be more interesting than last weeks Floyd Mayweather Juan Manuel Marquez tilt which was completely one sided. Both fighters in this one will have their moments and it just depends on who can stick to their game plan and succeed the best.

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson Retires

Quinton "Rampage" Jackson has retired from MMA and left the UFC to pursue an acting career according to his website. It seems he had issues with Dana White apparently putting his acting career at risk by disclosing his earnings. Jackson is under contract with the UFC but certainly was not disallowed to engage in other activities. He's going to be starring in the upcoming A-Team movie and is in the process of shooting the film. He was also to be scheduled to fight with Rashad Evans post their appearance on the Ultimate Fighter season 10.

Rampage is a fairly big star in the sport and it is odd that he is willing to put that aside for acting. You have to think that is partly due to the earning potential he has in UFC versus other opportunities available to him. It's a unique problem as this likely wouldn't have been an issue in boxing where everyone effectively runs their own career and negotiate directly with their counterparts. In the UFC you have to grow within the promotion and follow Dana White. In boxing terms, both Rashad and Quinton would have worked around his acting engagement and scheduled the fight since they weren't tied down by a league or promotion (assuming Jackson actually wants to fight).

I'm sure Jackson will be back once the situation calms a bit as there is no guarantee that he will have acting jobs in the future and his brand in MMA is strong enough that he can still earn well.

Vitor Belfort Smokes Rich Franklin at UFC 103

It didn't even seem close as Vitor Belfort's superior striking finished off Rich Franklin quickly and efficiently at UFC 103 last night. Franklin seemed uneasy while Belfort was comfortable and confident in the ring. At one point Franklin yelled to his corner that he couldn't hear them. It was definitely loud in the arena.

This sets up the interesting possibility of a Belfort / Anderson Silva tussle that would certainly generate a lot of interest. Vitor is good friends with Silva but said business is business and if the promotion wants them to fight he'll have no issue with that. It was originally thought that Nate Marquardt might take on Silva next in a rematch after his big win against Damian Maia. However, the fans aren't interested in seeing Silva fight someone he already dismantled so Belfort has probably arrived just in time. Given his recent form, Belfort should definitely give Anderson more of a challenge than he has gotten in recent years. Lets hope Dana White and the UFC brass make it happen.

Floyd Mayweather Shuts Down Juan Manuel Marquez

It was a pretty easy return to the ring for Floyd Mayweather as he dismantled the smaller Juan Manuel Marquez in a virtual shut out unanimous decision victory. Marquez couldn't mount an attack of any sort and seemed to be out of his element having to be the aggressor against Mayweather. Marquez' power didn't seem to translate well to welterweight as he couldn't hurt Mayweather in the limited instances when he was able to connect. Mayweather's defence was stellar as always and his offence did enough damage to convincingly beat Marquez.

This seemed to be a case of Marquez biting off more than he could chew by moving two weight classes above his highest previous fighting weight and taking on arguably the best welterweight in the world.

For Mayweather, this was a well crafted victory as many believed that Marquez had a decent shot despite Floyd being the heavy favorite. The reality was that Marquez would have to pull of an upset of all time proportions to win a fight like this. The promotions did a great job building up Marquez' chances beyond what could have been realistically expected of him. Nonetheless, Mayweather took care of business and dismantled Marquez in brilliant fashion for which he deserves full credit.

Next up for Mayweather could be Shane Mosley or Manny Pacquiao. Either would be interesting fights assuming Pacquiao takes out Miguel Cotto in November. Shane is considered the best welterweight in the world and Manny has generally been considered the top pound for pound fighter in the world while Mayweather has been away.

Floyd Mayweather vs Juan Manuel Marquez

Tonight is one of the biggest and most intriguing fights of the year. Un-retiring former pound for pound king Floyd Mayweather takes on current pound for pound number two Juan Manuel Marquez. The two weighed in last night at 146 pounds for Mayweather and 142 pounds for Marquez. The contractual limit for the fight was 144 pounds so Mayweather had to pay a two pound penalty of $600K. Mayweather will almost definitely be bigger tonight and is considered the faster fighter as well making it a huge uphill climb for Marquez. Most have Mayweather as a huge favorite with Marquez needing a monumental upset to win this fight. The only thing going for Juan Manuel Marquez (outside of his own tremendous heart and talent!) is the fact that Floyd has been out of the game for over two years and may be a little rusty. I expect the rust to wear off very soon, though, and for Floyd to take control of the fight and win a closer than expected decision against Marquez. Marquez has a huge heart and should be able to stay in the fight but will struggle a bit against Floyd's speed and power (which he has at this weight). The only way I see Marquez getting KO'd is if he is taking too much punishment and his corner stops the fight. To have any sort of chance at winning, Marquez will have to match Floyd's speed and display his tremendous heart by constantly staying on the attack. Lets see if he can do it!

Fedor Emelianenko VS Brett Rogers on CBS Television

The Fedor Emelianenko and Brett Rogers fight will take place on Nov. 7th on CBS television. The 29 year old Rogers is one of the top heavyweights in the world and will provide a great challenge for Fedor who is considered the best heavyweight in the world. The fact that Strikeforce is putting this on television is a great move. The exposure they will get for this fight and the immense potential in building Fedor's brand is huge. Television will do wonders for MMA since it is impossible to match the audience that television can give you with what you get on pay per view. I can't wait to watch this fight as I am now even more excited about it since it will be televised. Don't miss it!

Kimbo Slice on Ultimate Fighter tonight

What can we expect from Kimbo Slice as he makes his UFC television debut tonight (taped)? Will he be comfortable on a UFC television screen around several other heavyweight challengers? It will be interesting to see as Slice is one of the more experienced fighters in the group. Roy Nelson is the most experienced fighter who has been in the ring with the likes of Frank Mir and Andrei Arlovski. But it will be Slice who will attract the attention of fans and likely set a record television rating for the UFC. Can he win the entire thing? Will he make a decent enough showing to garner a spot in the UFC? I think the latter is more realistically his target. But you never know what can happen in the octagon.

Kimbo Slice in the UFC

Kimbo Slice is set to make his UFC television debut as he has entered the Ultimate Fighter 10 which will be airing this season. It will be interesting to see how he does against a group of decent heavyweights all vying to get into the UFC.

Slice isn't young at 35 but can probably produce a couple of good years if he is able to stay in shape and stay motivated (which shouldn't be a problem given his work ethic). The biggest challenge will be learning the art and refining his talent enough to become a true contender at heavyweight. I don't know if he has the confidence to do that but we will find out soon during the Ultimate Fighter.

Assuming Slice wins the Ultimate Fighter his popularity would provide a huge boost to the UFC. He is still probably the biggest draw in MMA.

MMA September Pound for Pound List

Here's the inaugural MMA pound for pound list on premier boxing:

1. Anderson Silva

Silva has dominated the middleweight division in recent years to a phenomenal degree and definitely deserves this top spot over number two. He's also dominated a couple of solid light heavyweights while waiting for Dana White to give him a challenger at middleweight.

2. Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor is close to Silva after having dominated the heavyweight division for several years. He'll have a few solid challengers in Strikeforce that should help him remain the most dominant heavyweight in the world.

3. Georges St. Pierre

St. Pierre has become the premier welterweight in the world after some solid recent victories. Although his dominance hasn't been as solid and indisputable as Silva or Fedor he is still young and now showing that he will stay undefeated for a while.

4. BJ Penn

Truly a pound for pound star. Penn has fought at several weight divisions throughout his career including light heavyweight despite being a natural lightweight. His dominance at lightweight is unquestionable and his record outside of lightweight is solid as well.

5. Lyoto Machida

Machida is a solid light heavyweight with a great record. He'll need to stay champion by winning some more championship fights like the others on the list have done in order to have a chance at moving up.