Hawaiian Fighting Arts

LEMOORE, Calif. – MMAjunkie.com was on scene for today’s “Tachi Palace Fights 5:
Stars & Strikes” official fighter weigh-ins in Lemoore, Calif.

Today’s weigh-in ceremonies took place at the Tachi Palace Hotel and
Casino, the same site as Friday night’s GoFightLive.tv-broadcast fight
card.

Main-event competitors Isaac de Jesus and former WEC lightweight
champion “Razor” Rob McCullough, who meet in a 160-pound catchweight
affair, made their bout official, while big-show veterans John Alessio,
Cole Escovedo, David Kaplan, Gabe Ruediger, and War Machine, as well as
top prospects Stephen Abas, David Bollea, Michael McDonald and David
Mitchell, all hit the scales, as well.

A 182-pound catchweight bout between veteran Joe Riggs and Louis Taylor is set for next month’s Strikeforce Challengers 10 event.

Strikeforce spokesperson Mike Afromowitz today confirmed the fight with MMAjunkie.com.

In addition to that contest, Afromowitz said the event also features the start of the organization’s 135-pound women’s tourney.

MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan is a guest on today’s edition of “The Mouthpiece MMA Show.”

The MMA talk show airs on Boston’s Sports Station – AM1510 “The Zone” – at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT). Morgan and co-hosts Tim O’Connor and Mark Daniels discuss the fallout from UFC 116, look forward to Friday’s Tachi Palace Fights card, and touch on many other recent topics in the world of MMA.

Bostonians can listen to the show on the AM dial, or listen online at www.1510thezone.com.

Fresh off a barnburner with fellow Canadian Yves Jabouin at WEC 49, Mark Hominick takes on another hard-swinging featherweight when he meets Leonard Garcia on the televised portion of WEC 51.

The match-up was first reported by MMAWeekly.com and confirmed today by MMAjunkie.com via sources close to the promotion.

Although not officially announced, WEC 51 takes place Sept. 30 at the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colo., and airs live on Versus.

Former K-1 and PRIDE heavyweight Mark Hunt was about to hop on a plane when he spoke today to MMAjunkie.com. And when asked to explain his sudden move into the UFC’s octagon, he had one thing to say.

“Why not?”

The 36-year-old fighter confirmed a four-fight deal with the UFC and a Sept. 25 UFC 119 meeting with Midwest standout Sean McCorkle.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s anti-piracy efforts show no signs of slowing down.

The organization today announced it has reached “confidential settlements” with more than 500 businesses and individuals as a result of illegal broadcasts and viewing of UFC events.

The settlements span over the past two years.

UFC lightweight Kurt Pellegrino raised the stakes prior to his most recent fight when he said he’d retire with a loss to George Sotiropoulos this past Saturday at UFC 116.

But after re-injuring his left knee in the first round of the fight and dropping a unanimous decision, Pellegrino is adamant that he won’t hang it up.

“I’m so sorry I lost the fight – to all my fans – but I don’t want to go out that way,” Pellegrino today told MMAjunkie.com.

Rafael Sapo, who picked up his fifth win in six fights with a knockout of Travis Lutter at the recent Moosin MMA event in Massachusetts, has signed a four-fight deal with the UFC.

Renzo Gracie announced the middleweight fighter’s signing via his official website.

Natal is an instructor (“professor”) at Gracie’s New York City-based academy.

When he wasn’t living in a California hippie commune, David Mitchell was traveling the world in his parents’ footsteps.

But after his childhood and soccer career ended, his work life proved unfulfilling, and embarrassed by a brief brush with the law, an out-of-shape Mitchell watched Evan Tanner’s UFC 51 victory over David Terrell.

He stumbled upon what would become his new life passion – one that takes the undefeated fighter into Friday’s Tachi Palace title defense against Poppies Martinez.

MMAjunkie.com lead staff reporter John Morgan is a guest on today’s edition of “The Fight Show with Mauro Ranallo.”

Morgan joins Ranallo to discuss this past weekend’s stunning UFC 116 event, look forward to a few upcoming shows and look at some of the latest headlines from around the MMA landscape.

Catch the segment at 4:15 p.m. ET (1:15 p.m. PT) on Hardcore Sports Radio,
which is available on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 98 or online at HardcoreSportsRadio.com