UFC Fans Vote Miguel Angel Torres as the 18th Recipient of the Tequila CAZADORES Spirit Award
The 18th recipient of the Tequila CAZADORES Spirit Award is bantamweight fighter Miguel Angel Torres . Miguel is known for his strong will, competitive nature and loyalty to mixed martial arts.
Tequila CAZADORES and UFC invited fans (21+) to decide the Tequila CAZADORES Spirit Award winner for UFC 123. Consumers had the opportunity to vote online at UFC.com for the fighter they thought demonstrated social responsibility, dedication to their art form, and good sportsmanship; the core values behind the Tequila CAZADORES brand and its sponsorship with UFC.
Miguel’s win was announced LIVE on February 5, 2011 , at UFC 126 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada as well as on Pay-Per-View during the fighter’s walk out to the Octagon™. Tequila CAZADORES congratulates Miguel on his win and would like to thank the increasingly growing number of fans for voting and supporting the Tequila CAZADORES Spirit Award.
A graduate of Purdue University, Miguel Angel Torres has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and specializes in Muay Thai Kick Boxing. Prior to his career in Mixed Martial Arts, he worked as a Radiologist’s assistant for five years. His experience working in a hospital setting inspired Miguel to raise awareness for breast cancer. As the winner of the Tequila CAZADORES Spirit Award, Tequila CAZADORES presented Miguel with a plaque and a check for a $1,000 donation made in his name to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Read more
UFC 116 Results: Lesnar defeated Carwin
UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar returned to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Saturday night in Las Vegas, and won a big fight against Shane Carwin. “My hat’s off to him” Carwin said, “He’s the champion”.
Check out the full UFC 116 Results below.
Pay-Per-View Bouts:
Brock Lesnar def. Shane Carwin via submission (arm triangle choke)
Chris Leben def. Yoshihiro Akiyama via submission (triangle choke)
Chris Lytle def. Matt Brown via submission (armbar)
Stephan Bonnar def. Krzysztof Soszynski via second-round TKO
George Sotiropoulos def. Kurt Pellegrino via unanimous decision
Spike TV Bouts:
Brendan Schaub def. Chris Tuchscherer by first-round TKO
Ricardo Romero def. Seth Petruzelli via submission (armbar)
Preliminary Bouts:
Kendall Grove def. Goran Reljic via split decision
Gerald Harris def. Dave Branch via third-round TKO
Daniel Roberts def. Forrest Petz via split decision
Jon Madsen def. Karlos Vemola via unanimous decision
HDNet Fights Presents: XFC 8: Regional Conflict
LIVE event now includes a World Featherweight Title fight – Saturday, April 25, 9:00 p.m. ET
HDNet will broadcast exclusive LIVE coverage of “HDNet Fights Presents: XFC 8: Regional Conflict” from the Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. The main event features a highly anticipated showdown between two military veterans as undefeated Bruce “The Noose” Connors of Orlando, Florida goes against Jarrod “The Wild Card” Card of Jacksonville, North Carolina for the XFC Featherweight World Title. Former pro wrestling superstar and undefeated heavyweight Bobby Lashley will be on hand to present the winner with the title. Also on the card, Rafaello “Tractor” Oliveira faces off with John “Mulatto Mauler” Mahlow and former University of Tennessee football player Ovince St. Preux will take on Ombey “Kryptonite” Mobley in a special light heavyweight showdown.
LIVE – Saturday, April 25 at 9:00 p.m. ET on HDNet.
March is a Monster Month of MMA Action on HDNet – Headlined by Affliction: Day of Reckoning
Explosive match-up between Fedor and Arlovski to air for the first time since the live pay-per-view event – exclusively on HDNet Friday, March 13 at 10:00 p.m. ET
For true MMA fans, HDNet is THE place to be this March as the network kicks off a full schedule of new MMA events, featuring the first cable network television broadcast of the blockbuster “Affliction: Day of Reckoning” event.
“Affliction: Day of Reckoning” was originally broadcast on pay-per-view and featured the long-awaited match-up between World Alliance of Mixed Martial Arts Heavyweight Champion Fedor Emelianenko and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski.
HDNet will air “Affliction: Day of Reckoning” on Friday, March 13 at 10:00 p.m. ET. The broadcast is part of an exclusive long-term partnership to air Affliction Entertainment events on HDNet in North America.
“HDNet Fights continues its mission to bring the best fighters in the world to HDNet,” said Andrew Simon, CEO of HDNet Fights. “After watching ‘Day of Reckoning,’ there is no doubt that Fedor is the #1 pound for pound fighter in the world. This event had the highest fighter payroll in MMA history – and the fighters delivered throughout the night.”
Also this March, HDNet will broadcast three new Mixed Martial Arts events.
On Saturday, March 14, at 9:00 p.m. ET HDNet will premiere “HDNet Fights Presents: HEIWA DREAM 7 Featherweight Grand Prix – 1st Round.” This event, taped in Japan on March 8, features Atsushi Yamamoto, Chase Beebe, Takafumi Otsuka, and Abel Cullum – plus the match-up between WAMMA World Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki and David Gardner.
Then, on Friday, March 20, it’s the debut of Sengoku as “HDNet Fights Presents: World Victory Road: Sengoku 7″ airing LIVE from Japan at midnight PT. The event will feature Hatsu Hioki, Hideki Kadowaki, L.C. Davis, Nick Denis, plus undefeated Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal takes on Ryo Kawamura. HDNet will also broadcast an encore presentation of this event at 10:00 p.m. ET on Friday, March 20.
Finally, on Saturday, March 28, “HDNet Fights Presents: FieLDS K-1 World Grand Prix 2009.” This is the first event in 2009 of the much anticipated K-1 World Grand Prix. HDNet’s partnership kicked off late last year with the K-1 World Grand Prix Finals and has featured the best K-1 fighters in the world through the K-1 Classic series – airing Friday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET. Participants for the K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 include Remy Bonjasky, Badr Hari, Semmy Schilt, and Peter Aerts. Timing for this live broadcast will be announced at a later date.
These events and much, much more round out a full month of MMA action this March – making HDNet THE television destination for MMA fans!
Source: HDNet
Pennsylvania to Allow Mixed Martial Arts
State Athletic Commission’s Newly-Approved Regulations Take Effect Feb. 27
Pennsylvania has joined the growing number of states to allow Mixed Martial Arts, or MMA, events, now that the State Athletic Commission has approved final regulations for the sport, Secretary of the Commonwealth Pedro A. Cortes announced today. The new regulations take effect Feb. 27, 2009.
“I commend the work of the State Athletic Commission on the regulations, which were crafted to ensure participant and spectator safety,” Cortes said. “These efforts will assure licensure and testing of participants for communicable diseases, as well as require emergency medical care and insurance for participants. Regulation of the sport also will help ensure that events are orderly and crowd control is maintained.”
Cortes noted that MMA has actively sought regulation. Pennsylvania joins a growing number of states, including New Jersey, Ohio, Maryland, California, Nevada and Florida that permit Mixed Martial Arts.
The State Athletic Commission anticipates regulating four to five MMA events per month, which may generate as much as $80,000 per year in revenue for the commission. As a self-supporting entity, the State Athletic Commission receives no taxpayer dollars from the state’s General Fund.
The commission and staff worked for more than a year to prepare the final regulations, which are commensurate with current boxing rules. Health and safety of the fighters and public protection are key themes of the regulations. Many facets of the sport were addressed, including age and medical requirements, fees, promoter activity, and ring requirements.
The regulations require that all professional ($22 fee) and amateur ($10 fee) MMA fighters must be licensed and take a pre-fight physical exam by a commission-approved doctor. All fighters must be at least 18 years old. Other exams may also be required, particularly for boxers over the age of 36. All female fighters will be required to take a pregnancy test before each event. All fighters also must provide an annual physical (on a commission form) as well as a negative HIV, Hepatitis C and Hepatitis B exam at the time of licensing, and exams cannot be more than six months old. Insurance is required for all fighters and referees, and an ambulance and emergency personnel with emergency equipment must be at ringside at all times.
Highlights of the promoter regulations require that all promoters must have a valid promoter’s license from the commission, which costs $100 per year. All promoters must also complete a criminal background check on a form supplied by the commission (fee is $10). A surety bond of not less than $15,000 must be on file with the commission before an MMA event takes place.
As safety and fairness are primary concerns, specific requirements are also outlined for the ring. The ring must be at least 20 feet square and no larger than 32 feet square within the five-ring ropes. The ring floor must extend at least 18 inches beyond the ropes and must be padded with Ensolite, vinyl or similar closed-cell foam, with at least a one-inch layer of foam padding. Padding must extend beyond the ring ropes and over the edge of the platform, with a top covering of canvas, duck or similar material tightly stretched and laced to the ring platform. Material that gathers in lumps or ridges may not be used.
For cage events, the enclosed area must be circular or have at least six equal sides and be at least 20 feet wide and no larger than 32 feet wide. The floor of the caged area must be padded with Ensolite, vinyl or similar closed-cell foam, with at least a one-inch layer of foam padding. Foam padding must have a top covering of canvas, duck or similar material tightly stretched and laced to the platform of the caged area. Material that gathers in lumps or ridges may not be used.
To learn more about the State Athletic Commission, visit the Department of State’s Web site at www.dos.state.pa.us and select “State Athletic Commission” on the left navigation bar.
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State