UFC on FOX 4: Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader & 'Shogun' Rua vs. Brandon Vera

[Kemal]

Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader Planned for UFC on FOX 4

Lyoto Machida finally has his next matchup.

In his first fight since a UFC light-heavyweight championship defeat at the hands of Jon Jones, the Brazilian karate master will face Ryan Bader. The bout will take place at UFC on FOX 4. It was first reported by Brazilian news outlet Esporte and confirmed by the UFC.

Once thought to be an unsolvable opponent, Machida has lost three of his last four, though one of those, a split decision loss to Quinton Jackson, was controversial. His only win since the start of 2010 was a knockout of Randy Couture at April 2011's UFC 129.

Machida most recently lost to Jones by second-round submission last December, and has been awaiting an opponent since. He is 17-3 overall.

Bader, meanwhile, will hope to take into the fight the momentum of consecutive wins. His most recent, a unanimous decision victory over Jackson, marked his most significant victory to date. Prior to that, he knocked out Jason Brilz. With the two-fight win streak, he is now 14-2.

UFC on FOX 4 is penciled in for August 4, emanating from Los Angeles' Staples Center.

[LJ Silver]

Ik hoop dat dit niet weer zo'n lay&pray wordt van Bader

[XanaduNL]

Ik hoop dat dit niet weer zo'n lay&pray wordt van Bader

Reken er maar wel op. Maarja, Machida is natuurlijk erg goed in ontwijken, dus we zullen zien.

[Diz]

Lyoto gaat Bader slopen!!!

[Kemal]

UFC on FOX 4 Draws Travis Browne vs. Ben Rothwell

Fresh off respective award-winning performances at UFC 145, big men Travis Browne and Ben Rothwell have been paired off for a UFC on FOX 4 encounter.
The heavyweight tangle was announced overnight by the promotion.

Both men won in short order at UFC 145.

Browne continued his unbeaten stretch with an arm-triangle submission win over Chad Griggs in just 2:29. It was his first tapout win in the UFC, and only the second of his career as he improved to 13-0-1. For his efforts, he won the Submission of the Night bonus.

Rothwell took one of the evening's other big prizes, Knockout of the Night, needing just 70 seconds to conquer Brendan Schaub. It was an emotional win for the longtime veteran, who said afterward that he probably would have retired if he had lost.

Rothwell is 32-8 overall, and while he's been around the MMA scene for over a decade, at 30 years old, he's just nine months older than Browne.

UFC on FOX 4 takes place on August 4 from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Other announced fights include Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader, and Brian Stann taking on the debuting former Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard.

[Kemal]

[Lionheart]

Knalpartij!

Ik ga voor Lombard!

[nick diaz]

he Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) brass must think very highly of middleweight newcomer and former Bellator 185-pound champion Hector Lombard.Not only does "Lightning" get a possible title shot by knocking out the "All American," he gets the chance to do it as a headliner for the promotion's UFC on FOX 4 event scheduled for the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Calif., on Aug. 4, 2012.Stann confirmed an initial report by Heavy.com during this past weekend's UFC on FOX 3 event in New Jersey.Lombard's only two losses have come by unanimous decision to Gegard Mousasi and Akihiro Gono in fights that took place nearly six years ago. He has 24 finishes, including 17 (T)KO stoppages in 31 wins.Scary stuff -- but he's faced with his toughest test to date.

Stann is one of the very best 185-pound fighters the world's largest fight promotion has to offer. He was last seen destroying Alessio Sakara via first round ground-n-pound knockout in Stockholm, Sweden, at the UFC on FUEL TV 2 event just last month.Prior to that he was 3-1 in his last four appearances, including three violent finishes. His only defeat came at the hands of top middleweight title contender Chael Sonnen.How do you, as a fan, feel about this bout as the main event?UFC on FOX 4 will also feature the recently announced light heavyweight bout pitting Ryan Bader vs. Lyoto Machida while Terry Etim vs. Joe Lauzon and Ben Rothwell vs. Travis Browne are also scheduled for the "City of Angels."

[Kemal]

UFC on FOX 4 Fight Card: Lauzon vs. Etim Headlines Trio of Additions

A lightweight clash pitting fan-favorite Joe Lauzon against English submission ace Terry Etim has been added to the fight card of UFC on FOX 4, currently slated for August 4, 2012 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA.
Lauzon announced the match-up via his personal website on Wednesday, but didn't specify if it would take place on the preliminary card or the FOX broadcast.

Both men head into the bout looking to rebound from brutal highlight-reel knockout losses. Lauzon (21-7) recently saw his two-fight win streak come to an end after dropping from a head kick just 81 seconds into his tilt against former WEC champion Anthony Pettis. Likewise, Eitm (15-4) found himself on the mother-of-all-highlights after being floored from a Edson Barboza spinning wheel kick deep into their January contest.

Previously, Lauzon and Eitm were slated to meet at UFC 118, however Eitm was forced to pull out of the fight with a broken rib, leaving Lauzon to fight Gabe Ruediger.

"For both of us, this is kind of like deja vu because we have already trained for one another," Lauzon wrote on his website. "I liked the fight the first time around, but I really like the fight this time around as I have grown tremendously as an athlete and fighter."

Additionally, UFC officials announced a pair of heavyweight match-ups for the California card.

TUF 10 veteran Matt Mitrione (5-1), who looks to right the ship after suffering the first loss of his career in a listless unanimous decision to Cheick Kongo, is slated to meet British bruiser Rob Broughton (15-7-1), who heads into the contest fresh from back-to-back losses to Travis Browne and Phil De Fries.

Also, English brawlers Oli Thompson (9-3) and De Fries (8-1) hope to get back into the win column after falling to Shawn Jordan and Stipe Miocic in their last outings, respectively.

[smike]

Machida gaat bader een pak slaag geven!

[Kemal]

Chad Griggs Meets Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 4 in Light Heavyweight Debut

A devastating first-round loss to Travis Browne was all it took for Chad Griggs to reconsider his heavyweight status.Announced Monday, Griggs will be welcomed into the 205-pound division by Phil Davis at UFC on FOX 4, which is slated for August 4, 2012 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. Both men have verbally agreed to the match-up, though UFC officials did not detail if it will take place on the network broadcast.

The light heavyweight clash joins a card already featuring high-profile matches between Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader, Brian Stann vs. Hector Lombard and Travis Browne vs. Ben Rothwell.

Davis (9-1) hopes to rebound after suffering the first setback of his young career, a listless unanimous decision loss to former champion Rashad Evans in January. Prior to that, the 27-year-old All-American wrestler blazed through nine straight victories, including five under the Zuffa banner over the likes of Brian Stann, Alexander Gustafsson and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

Griggs (11-2), meanwhile, looks to right the ship after having a surprising six-fight win streak snapped by the loss to Browne in his UFC debut. The former Strikeforce heavyweight has proven to be a mighty finisher thus far in his career, knocking out or submitting all 11 of his victories, including a stunning second-round TKO of Bobby Lashley back in 2010.

[Kemal]

Michihiro Omigawa vs. Manny Gamburyan in Place for UFC on FOX 4

A featherweight bout has been added to the UFC's fourth outing on FOX as Michihiro Omigawa is set to face Manny Gamburyan as part of the UFC on FOX 4 fight card. Sources close to the situation confirmed the news with MMA Fighting's Ariel Helwani.Both fighters appear to be in must-win positions ahead of this pivotal bout.

Gamburyan, 31, has dropped three of his last four at featherweight. He most recently faced Diego Nunes at UFC 141 in December of 2011 where he ultimately lost by unanimous decision. Omigawa, 36, has also lost three of last four in the weight class. In his last bout he was defeated via unanimous decision to Yuri Alcantara at UFC 142 in January of 2012.

UFC on FOX 4 will take place August 4th, 2012 and will be held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The event will be headlined by a non-title middleweight bout between Brian Stann and former Bellator middleweight champion Hector Lombard.

[weks]

machida - bader
krijg een beetje het gevoel dat ufc hem via deze partij nog even binnen probeert te houden

[Kemal]

After Lengthy Absence, Mike Swick Returns to Action At UFC on FOX 4

It's been a long time since Mike Swick last fought in the octagon. When he last competed, Randy Couture was still an active fighter, B.J. Penn was the UFC lightweight champion, and the UFC only had five divisions, as featherweight, bantamweight and flyweight had yet to be added.

Since then, Swick has been hampered by health issues, including a stomach disease and a knee injury. Finally healthy, he's ready to make his first octagon start since February 2010. It will come against DeMarques Johnson at August 4's UFC on FOX 4.
The fight was one of four confirmed by the UFC on Tuesday.


The 32-year-old Swick (14-4) will be attempting to win his first fight since June 2009, when he beat Ben Saunders via TKO. His two most recent bouts resulted in losses to Dan Hardy and Paulo Thiago, respectively.

Johnson (16-10) his alternated wins and losses in his last six bouts, most recently tapping out to John Maguire in a second-round submission at UFC on FUEL 2.

Swick won't be the only fighter returning after a lengthy absence, as featherweight Josh Grispi (14-3) will make his first start since June 2011 when he faces Pablo Garza.

The 23-year-old Grispi was supposed to fight at last October's UFC 136 before bowing out with an injury. Prior to that, he lost two straight bouts. Garza (11-3) will also be hoping to snap a two-fight losing skid, having dropped bouts to Dennis Bermudez and Dustin Poirier.

Two other featherweight bouts are also on the slate, with Nam Phan (17-10) squaring off against Cole Miller (18-6), while Michihiro Omigawa (13-11-1) set to scrap with Manny Gamburyan (11-7).

UFC on FOX 4 has yet to be officially announced, but is expected to take place at Los Angeles' Staples Center.

[Kemal]

[Kemal]

Brian Stann Out of UFC on FOX 4 Main Event

The injury bug has hit the UFC once again.

UFC on FOX 4 headliner Brian Stann has been pulled out of his Aug. 4 fight against Hector Lombard due to an injured shoulder, MMAFighting.com has confirmed with sources close to the fight. According to those same sources, Stann will not require surgery for the injured shoulder, but will be on the sidelines for approximately 6-to-8 weeks.

No word just yet on who will replace Stann against the former Bellator middleweight champion later this summer.

Stann last appeared in the Octagon this past April when he knocked out Alessio Sakara in the first round of the co-main event at UFC on FUEL TV 2.

[Diz]

Jammer voor Stan...
Persoonlijk zou ik Lombard zó graag tegen Toquinho zien!

Twee van die bruten tegen elkaar kan alleen maar vuurwerk betekenen!

[Kemal]

'Shogun' Rua vs. Brandon Vera Gets UFC on FOX 4 Main Event Slot

With Brian Stann out of the UFC on FOX 4 main event, the UFC has scrapped the idea of a middleweight headliner.

Instead, the promotion has turned to its former light-heavyweight champion, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, who will face Brandon Vera as the anchor to the show, scheduled for August 4 in Los Angeles. The five-round matchup was confirmed on Wednesday night, with the promotion saying that verbal agreements were in place.

Stann had been expected to fight the debuting Hector Lombard, but withdrew on Wednesday, citing an injured shoulder.

The UFC didn't wait long in finding its replacement.

Rua (20-6) will be competing for the first time since his November 2011 classic against Dan Henderson, a fight which he lost by decision. He's split his last six fights. He had been scheduled to fight at UFC 149, but after losing his own opponent, Thiago Silva, due to injury, accepted the opportunity to move to the new date.

Vera had also penciled into a fight, lined up to face James Te Huna in July before the UFC reshuffled the deck.

The opportunity presents the possibility of a major turnaround for the 34-year-old Vera (12-5, 1 no contest), who was briefly released by the UFC last year after losing to Silva, a result that was later changed to a no contest after Silva admitted to using a urine alduterant during a post-fight drug test. As a result, Vera's release was rescinded. Since then, he has fought once, earning a unanimous decision win over Eliot Marshal last October.

While the UFC noted that a new opponent would soon be found for Te Huna, no further information about Lombard's near future was offered. The 34-year-old former Bellator champion hasn't lost a fight since 2006, a stretch of 25 consecutive bouts, and might have earned UFC's No. 1 middleweight contender spot with a win.

Instead, he'll be left to wait for a new opponent.

Meanwhile, the injury bug has affected one other expected fight on the UFC on FOX 4 card, as Pablo Garza is out of his matchup with Josh Grispi, replaced by Rani Yahya.

[Kemal]

Jamie Varner Replaces Injured Terry Etim Against Joe Lauzon at UFC on FOX 4

English lightweight Terry Etim is the latest fighter to succumb to the injury bug.

An undisclosed injury forced Etim out of his UFC on FOX 4 clash against Joe Lauzon, UFC officials announced earlier this week. Reinvigorated former WEC champion Jamie Varner has been tapped to fill the vacant spot.

UFC on FOX 4 is slated for August 4, 2012 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. Lauzon vs. Etim was previously slotted on the FOX televised main card, which is headlined by a light heavyweight match-up pitting Mauricio Rua against Brandon Vera.

Varner (20-6-1, 2 NC) enters the bout on short notice after pushing his winning streak to three straight with a first-round knockout over highly-touted Brazilian prospect Edson Barboza at UFC 146. The upset marked the 27-year-old's first fight in the UFC since 2007.

Across the cage, Lauzon (21-7), the owner of seven post-fight UFC bonuses, looks to rebound from a devastating head kick knockout loss Anthony Pettis. Prior to the setback, "J-Lau" rolled to a consecutive first-round submission finishes of Melvin Guillard and Curt Warburton.

[Kemal]

Ian McCall vs. John Moraga Added to UFC on FOX 4

Ian McCall is jumping right back on the horse. Just over one month after falling in a UFC flyweight semifinal matchup with Demetrious Johnson, the dynamic Californian will waste no time getting back in the octagon. He's accepted a fight with UFC newcomer John Moraga, which will take place at UFC on FOX 4.

The promotion confirmed the matchup on Thursday.

With the show scheduled for August 4, McCall will have little more than two weeks to prepare.

Coming off back-to-back barn-burners with Johnson, McCall is still hunting for his first UFC win. He's 11-3-1 in his career.

Moraga is an Arizona-based fighter who trains out of respected camps The Lab (home to current UFC lightweight champion Ben Henderson) and Arizona Combat Sports (Jamie Varner).

Moraga is 10-1 and riding a four-fight win streak, with his only career loss coming in a 2010 decision against current UFC standout John Dodson.

UFC on FOX 4 takes place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and features a quadruple-header on network TV with fights including Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Brandon Vera, Lyoto Machida vs. Ryan Bader, Travis Browne vs. Ben Rothwell and Joe Lauzon vs. Jamie Varner.

[Kemal]

[Kemal]

Matt Mitrione Explains Why He Turned Down Travis Browne Fight at UFC on FOX 4

When the news of Ben Rothwell's injury was first reported, a lot of MMA fans asked, Why not have Matt Mitrione fight Travis Browne?

It's a valid question, especially since Mitrione was once scheduled to fight Rob Broughton at UFC on FOX 4 before visa issues forced Broughton off the card. In fact, the UFC recently asked Mitrione to step in on short notice to fight Browne, but he decided to turn the fight down. Here's why:

According to Mitrione, he was informed that his fight against Broughton was going to be scrapped from the card five weeks ago. He even alluded to that on a July 3 episode of The MMA Hour. Since then, he has yet to be booked on another UFC card. He was hoping to fight on Sept. 7 in his hometown of Indianapolis, but that card was recently canceled.

"Since I haven't been booked," Mitrione said, "I have been home visiting my children and not training in a way that would allow me to do two things: put on a fight that the fans deserve and fight a top-tier fighter like Travis Browne."

Mitrione, who hasn't fought since last October due to various injuries, admitted to thinking long and hard about the opportunity, but ultimately felt like he made the right decision.

"It's inevitable that Travis and I will fight," he said, "but he and the fans deserve the best me possible because that scrap will certainly have title implications when it happens."

[Kemal]

Travis Browne Off UFC on FOX 4; Swick vs. Johnson Bumped to Main Card

Travis Browne's loss is a pair of welterweights' gain.

According to the UFC on FOX Twitter account, Browne has been removed from the Aug. 4 card, while Mike Swick vs. DaMarques Johnson has been bumped up to the main card. In the end, while names like Devin Cole and Matt Mitrione were discussed, the UFC could not find a suitable opponent for Browne.

Swick (14-4) hasn't fought since his loss to Paulo Thiago at UFC 109 in Feb. 2010. A serious stomach ailment and a knee injury kept him out of the Octagon for over two years.

Johnson (16-10) lost to John Maguire in his last fight via second-round armbar submission.

UFC on FOX 4, headlined by Shogun Rua vs. Brandon Vera, will air on FOX from the Staples Center in Los Angeles next Saturday night.

[Kemal]

[Kemal]