Damn, Chael. Say it ain't so.
It seems as though the "Gangster From Oregon" who claims to be "The Pound-for-Pound Best Shit-Talker" in the UFC and is the #1 contender for Anderson Silva's middleweight title has tested positive for some sort of performance-enhancing drug, according to the results of the post-fight drug screen from his August 7 fight against the champion at UFC 117.
From Sherdog:
“[Sonnen] received his notice [of the failed test] yesterday (Sept. 18),” [California State Athletic Commission Executive Officer George] Dodd told Sherdog.com shortly after the Shane Mosley-Sergio Mora boxing match ended Saturday night in Los Angeles.
In a conversation the day before, Dodd declined to comment on the situation, other than answering that all fighters from UFC 117 had passed drugs-of-abuse scans, but that the commission was still waiting on performance-enhancing drug screens from the event.
Dodd did not state which banned substance was red-flagged, but with a clean drugs-of-abuse scan it is clear the positive test was for a performance-enhancing substance. ...
Silva’s manager Ed Soares, who engaged in some heated exchanges via the media in the build up to the fight, was stunned when asked for his reaction.
“If it’s true, I feel really bad for him,” said Soares. “I know he did it to himself but it is really sad, he put on such a great performance that night. It is just a shame it will be tarnished.”
I'm in full agreement with Soares. Sonnen was very impressive at 117, giving Silva more trouble than I've ever seen anybody give him, and most likely would have won by decision had Silva's deadly elbows and prodigious ground game not kept the match from going to the cards.
And as if that weren't proof enough, the fact that Sonnen may have been on that Sammy Sosa and STILL couldn't beat Silva just goes to show had bad "The Spider" really is. That boy's a beast. (I still wanna see him fight Machida, though.)
EXTRA:
- Did you know that Sonnen ran for an Oregon Senate seat (before dropping out of the race) earlier this year? I had no idea.
Supplier: Sherdog
Even in the midst of a recession, The Ultimate Fighting Championship is a cash cow.
Here's a snippet of the CNBC piece:
The privately-held UFC says its revenues for 2008 were $275 million, up 37 percent from two years earlier. And the league signed its first Fortune 500 sponsors. In 2008, Bud Light became the official beer of the brand and Harley Davidson rides the league's exploding popularity.
It says a lot about the growth of a brand that was once near extinction.
"This was something that wasn't allowed on pay-per-view, you know, a couple of years before," says UFC President Dana White. "Porn is on pay-per-view, okay? You can watch porn on pay-per-view. The UFC wasn't allowed on pay-per-view. That's how bad it was."
In 2008, pay per view events generated more than five million buys, beating the demand for boxing and wrestling.
Events typically sell out and remain a hot commodity. Seats to the marquee UFC 100, in July 2009, went in a matter of minutes and ranged from $500 to $40,000 apiece in the secondary market. Evidence to Lorenzo Fertitta that the UFC is weathering the economic downturn pretty well.
"We are up year over year in every category. Revenue, profit, pay per view, live gate, international TV sales, sponsorships, everywhere," said UFC co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta. "The question is without our recession, where would our business be?"
I can testify to how much a hot commodity UFC 100 tickets were. I wanted to go, but even seats up in the nosebleeds were going for $500 a pop. We had to settle for the closed-circuit screening right behind the venue at the Mandalay Bay Beach, and even those tickets went for a cool $50.
Like Fertitta, I, too, wonder how much UFC'd be earning if not for the recession...
Catch the whole story here.
Not everyone gets this opportunity to be on this show like I did. What happens from this point is up to me. There might have been a little more money elsewhere in the short run, but I’m looking at the big picture...
My favorite backyard bully reflects on the best career decision he's ever made.
My reflections after the stretch.
STRETCH...
I’m the only guy going in the house with a bull’s-eye on my back. That’s cool. I’m always going to be the underdog, no matter who I fight. These guys have been doing it over 10 years, some of them all their lives. And in me, you got a guy coming right off the streets. - Kimbo Slice, first day of filming on TUF 10
Guess who's back? The king of the neighborhood knockout is back after being pimped by the goons at EliteXC. Now, I don't blame Kimbo for chasing the loot (the nigga's got 5 kids.), I just knew that Elite wasn't the place for him to become a better fighter. All they did was dump money on Kimbo so they could parade him around like some prize pony in attempts to gain more viewers (it worked, by the way). Again, good for Kimbo's bottom line, bad for Kimbo's octagonal skills.
Not surprisingly, EliteXC folded like a weak-ass, paper organization should, which immediately made me wonder if dude's career would be over.
UFC is the holy grail of mixed martial arts, and I was sure Kimbo would never get in because it was my understanding that Dana White, the organization's genius co-founder and President, hated Kimbo's fuckin' guts.
I don't think he's a big Dana White fan... You know, how could you be after all the things that have gone back and forth? - UFC President Dana White on The Carmichael Dave Show, KHTK North Cali
Dana's gone on record saying that Kimbo "sucks," that he'd get "killed" in UFC and that the onliest way he'd even think about giving "Big Ferg" a contract is if he made his way through The Ultimate Fighter.
Dana, like most MMA fans across the country, made totally irrational, snap judgments on Kimbo for reasons that I still don't fully understand. The way they talk about him, you'd think Kimbo was the biggest asshole God ever created. But if you check his interviews or even watch his old, pre-MMA, $5000 backyard fights, Kimbo is always gracious, never gallivanting around like he was King of the World or some shit and always showing respect for his felled opponent. The only thing Kimbo did that could even be perceived as asshole-ism is throwing his fists up to the camera; even though all he ever said while doing this is, "This is what I do. This is how I eat." I, personally, was never mad at that.
I think Dana's ire was misdirected. He had more of a problem with Kimbo being treated like the biggest thing in MMA - all in the main event on CBS primetime and shit - when his biggest accomplishment until that point was knockin' out a string of ol' regular-ass niggas in backyards across Miami.
But I respect Dana 'cause he's fair, and in true Dana White fashion, he kept his word and gave Kimbo a slot on the show (I say "gave" because the guys didn't have to fight their way into the house this season). And, in true Kimbo Slice fashion, he immediately impressed.
I said a lot of things about this guy, and I'm gonna tell you now, just like I would, I've got nothing but respect for him. This guy stepped up and he wants to fight on The Ultimate Fighter. And he's dead serious about winning this thing too. - Dana on The Carmichael Dave Show
Apparently, Dana changed his tune on Kimbo after FINALLY speaking to the man and eventually agreed to let him rock on Season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter. Dana's a business genius, so I'm sure he recognized Kimbo's earning potential, too. Sure, he's only got like 4 pro fights, but so did Brock Lesnar going into his TITLE DEFENSE at UFC 100, right? Now, Kimbo's no Brock, but I'm just sayin'...
Anyway, here's what else Dana has to say about Kimbo now:
They say he can't fight, and, in a sense, they're right -- he's an incredible street fighter, but his MMA skill is infantile, to say the least. What they seem to forget, though, is that Kimbo is a rookie who has never really faced anyone impressive as a pro, and you can't sharpen steel with cotton. The only real challenge he's ever had was Seth Petruzelli, and he lost that one. Kimbo was the much bigger man, but was still outmatched due to Seth's technical skills.
And all Kimbo's interested in in improving. He claims to not even have sex with his wife for like 8 weeks while he's training. Did I mention dude has 5 kids? That means him and wife get it in OFTEN, so that's quite the sign of focus if you ask me.
But, I digress.
So Kimbo's got nowhere to go but up. He's got the world against him and has already acknowledged the bullseye on his back, but I think he's up to the challenge. He's humble, he's got natural gifts but still trains hard as a muthafucka, and he ain't scared. Now I'm not predicting a TUF 10 victory for Mr. Ferguson, but I do anticipate him competing and impressing because he's got a LOT to prove.
Good luck, Kimbo. Prove these niggas wrong!!
(SIDENOTE: While I'm definitely looking forward to this season of TUF, I really can't wait for it to hurry up and end so we can finally see that "black-on-black crime" we've been waiting for!! Rampage wants to get that belt back - unfortunately, he'd have to get it from Lyoto "Laugh at my Karate Pants and I'll Whoop Your Ass" Machida now - but Rashad says all he'll get is knocked the fuck out. Rampage/Rashad will be damn-near epic!)
Other than Kimbo, you can catch these other Heavyweights competing for that contract this season (from UFC.com):
Zak Jensen – standout wrestler at Augsburg College
Marcus Jones – former 1st round NFL draft pick who had a six-year career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (This guy's older than Kimbo)
Scott "Punk Haole" Junk – Division II All-American football player at Southwest Oklahoma State and fought in UFC 76.
James McSweeney – former international kickboxing and Muay Thai champion
Jon Madsen – defeated Brock Lesnar in a high school wrestling match
Matt Mitrione - played for New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings
Roy "Big Country" Nelson – former IFL Heavyweight Champion
Demico Rogers – high school football and wrestling star
Brendan Schaub – played for Buffalo Bills and Arena Football’s Utah Blaze
Darrill Schoonover – decorated Army veteran
Wes Shivers – former member of the Tennessee Titans and Atlanta Falcons
Wes Sims - fought two heated battles with former UFC champ Frank Mir at UFC 43 and UFC 46 (this guy's 6'10"!!)
Abe Wagner – played linebacker at Michigan Tech and has a degree in mechanical engineering
Mike Wessel – UFC veteran and former strength and conditioning coach at University of Arkansas
Justin Wren – All-American high school wrestler
TUF 10 premieres September 16th on SpikeTV.
(For more on Kimbo, check out Spike's "Kimbo Uncut" series, parts 1 and 2.)
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