Sunday's MMA/Boxing Roundup: Joshua Clottey Collects a Check, UFC Rumors

• Last night Joshua Clottey did his part to make a lot of people feel like they wasted fifty precious dollars and a Saturday night. In his unanimous decision loss to Manny Pacquiao, in which he lost every single round in most eyes, it was clear Clottey was happy with the first seven figure pay day in his career, and wasn't planning on how to get another one. Clottey kept his guard up for twelve rounds, refusing to engage. How any fan will care to see Clottey in another high-level match up is beyond me. The reality is, they won't.

• The under card to last nights "event" was equally worthless. John Duddy reminded us why he will never be relevant in this sport.  Alphonso Gomez was allowed to retire another faded legend. And Humberto Soto did his best to make sure his fight with David Diaz got its full 47 minutes of exposure. Seriously, there should be a way to get a refund here.

• It was quite sad to see a one time great fighter, in Jose Luis Castillo, reducing himself for a paycheck. As the HBO commentating team stated, he did set himself up for this by not making weight numerous times. Hopefully he can find another way to make a living and enjoy what should be his retirement from boxing.

• Rumors are swirling about the UFC possibly matching up Rich Franklin and Chuck Liddell. There are many theories on what is happening with Tito Ortiz, but nothing is substantial. Dana White denied that there are any changes and assures everyone that Rich Franklin will be fighting Randy Couture. He also stated that him and Tito "are cool." If you ask me, I couldn't care less if Chuck and Tito aren't fighting again. We've seen it twice and that was enough. None of these matches interest me in the slightest anyway. Yes they were at the top once, but they're all has-beens now. Lets focus on the present.

• I really am very curious what is going on with Tito Ortiz. However, I get the feeling this is a stunt to bump up the ratings for the upcoming Ultimate Fighter season. I wouldn't put it past any of the people involved.

• I recently watched the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter: The Comeback. I think it was the most legitimate season of the show (season five was very good, too). The UFC would be well advised to do another season along those lines if they continue with the show after this season. Everyone is tired of the same storylines from mediocre fighters that will never make it in the UFC. The UFC gets rid of so many fighters these days, so I don't think they would have trouble bringing back sixteen of them to make the show.

• I love these fans that are cheering for the UFC to counter-program the upcoming Strikeforce show. Apparently they don't want more quality fights for free. Do they understand it is the same sport? Do they not understand that more is better? Support the sport, not the people making money off of it!

• I really liked the idea of Zab Judah and Devon Alexander meeting in St. Louis for Alexander's 140 lb. titles. Sadly, because of former monetary disputes, Don King(Alexander's promoter) refuses to work with Zab Judah. Hopefully HBO can find another spot for Zab in their unofficial 140 lb. tournament. The likely replacement for Zab is former lightweight titlist, Paul Spadafora. This doesn't compare to the attention a fight with Zab would get, but it would be a fine match up.

• Timothy Bradley has recently signed to fight on HBO. He is considered by most the top 140 lb. fighter in the world at the moment, and the network is currently setting up fights in the division to crown a legitimate champion. However, Bradley's HBO debut will be at welterweight against undefeated contender Luis Carlos Abregu. This fight really makes no sense to me. It is a high-risk low reward fight for Bradley, and does nothing for his stature in his own weight class. Abregu is a talented fighter but has very little name value. In my opinion, they should scrap this fight and set Bradley up to fight the recently available Zab Judah at his own weight.

• I don't understand how some boxing fans are critical of Showtime's Super Six tournament. It is a great idea that is out of the norm and it guarantees that six of the top fighters in their division all have to fight each other. I personally am incredibly excited about the second round. It seems to me that some people have a complex about watching Showtime, when HBO is considered number one. Or about watching Strikeforce, when UFC is the top dog. Follow the sport, not the promoter or network! Just a thought.

• When Joan Guzman dominated Humberto Soto in 2007, I couldn't have been more impressed. Since then his career has been one disappointment after another. A lot of it was probably due to unavoidable personal problems, but it was disappointing nonetheless. Hopefully Guzman can get back to his old brilliance, at least enough to make his upcoming rematch with Ali Funeka worth watching.

• Thank you to the people running ESPN's Friday Night Fights for putting together their next two events. They should be very entertaining.

• Clottey, keep some ice on those forearms! They earned you your money.