UFC 100 and the post-fight antics of Brock Lesnar have the mainstream media paying attention.
Pardon the Interruption has discussed MMA each day since returning to the airwaves following the centennial show in Las Vegas. That may not sound like much, but considering they spent Five Good Minutes with Jay Glazer yesterday, it's clearly headway and the timing couldn't be better.
While Lesnar's post-fight spectacle certainly wasn't intended to draw the curious eye of the casual fan and mainstream media outlets, now that they're paying attention, an outstanding month with no fewer than five top level events will showcase some of the brightest stars in the sport and possibly cement Mixed Martial Arts' standing as the sport of the future.
Without question, August 2009 is the single greatest month to be an MMA fan in the history of the world.
Instead of longingly waiting for that usual one event fix, all but one weekend in August offers a major showcase of some of the best fighters in the sport, beginning with arguably the best of all on August 1st.
Affliction: Trilogy takes place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California with Fedor Emelianenko taking on long-time friend Josh Barnett for the WAMMA Heavyweight title.
Though not necessarily the household name that Lesnar has quickly become thanks to his WWE past and UFC present, "The Last Emperor" is the unquestioned top heavyweight in the sport today and pound for pound the best in the eyes of many.
Emelianenko isn't the only top name competing on the Affliction card either; while they might only put on an event every six months, there is no denying the impressive lineups that Affliciton's Tom Atencio rolls out each time.
Former UFC veteran and Strikeforce champion Renato "Babalu" Sobral faces a stiff test from Gegard Mousasi, a 23-year-old riding a 12 fight win streak across several weight classes who is quickly becoming a favorite among MMA fans.
Additionally, Vitor Belfort takes on Jorge Santiago, Paul Buentello faces dangerous striker Gilbert Yvel, and Japanese legend "The Fireball Kid" Takanori Gomi returns to North America for the first time in nearly three years to take on Rafaello Oliveira.
Even the preliminary card is impressive, and the best part is that we're just getting started.
9 Comments
Loading more comments...
This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete