News broke over the last few days that Rich Franklin replaced Tito Ortiz during the tapings of The Ultimate Fighter season 11. Further news indicates that Chuck Liddell vs. Rich Franklin is all but set for UFC 115 with the future of Tito Ortiz in serious doubt.

I began hearing rumors of an incident during The Ultimate Fighter taping last week, yet nothing was ever confirmed. The UFC has yet to confirm the Ortiz-Franklin swap, yet every major MMA reporter has confirmed this as fact. The only comment that UFC president Dana White has made on this is through Twitter account. White tweeted that Rich Franklin will be fighting Randy Couture, not Chuck Liddell in his next fight. White never denied or touched on the fact that Tito Ortiz was removed other than to say, “Tito and I are still cool.” At this point the cat is out of the bag so it would probably be in his best interest to address the news.

Multiple reporters are sticking by their stories of a Chuck Liddell vs. Rich Franklin fight. To be fair, most reports indicate that this fight has been verbally agreed upon but not officially signed. It appears to me that Dana White’s denial is either something of a smoke screen or he hasn’t officially informed Randy Couture of the change in plans. Otherwise the whole story is a bit confusing to me quite honestly.

The big news here is what the heck happened to Tito Ortiz? Watching Tito Ortiz on The Ultimate Fighter season three and interviewing him, he came off as arguably the best coach in the history of the show. I can’t imagine what he could do to get thrown off the show, when Rampage Jackson can play pranks and break doors and remain intact throughout the season. My assumption is that this is injury-related and something happened either to Tito that prompted Dana to step in and remove him from the show. Knowing how much Dana White loves controversy, I can’t imagine him removing Tito for a physical altercation, etc. I’d also think if Tito was removed for something like that he would be very upset and openly talking about it. Tito has denied all of these rumors through tweets for the record.

Welcome back to 2005 UFC fans! I really don’t know what I find less exciting here between a Liddell vs. Ortiz, Liddell vs. Franklin, or Franklin vs. Couture match? Regular readers of my writings know that I am not a Rich Franklin fan whatsoever. I think Rich had a good run when his division was weak, but hasn’t done anything impressive since Anderson Silva came into the division. His only big win came against Wanderlei Silva via decision, and in my mind it was questionable at best. However, Franklin should be able to take Liddell apart at this stage in Chuck’s game. Franklin is just faster and will probably fight the same kind of game plan that he used against Wanderlei Silva. It will probably be a less competitive match than Liddell vs. Ortiz, and probably a lot more boring.

So where does this leave the Huntingdon Beach Bad Boy? He signed a long term deal with the UFC last year. Dana White had big plans for Tito Ortiz, yet it has been a rocky road for the former UFC light heavyweight champion. Ortiz’s first fight against Mark Coleman was canceled, Ortiz lost to Forrest Griffin in a very good fight, and now he has been removed from The Ultimate Fighter season 11 and pulled from his next fight. If this is an injury related situation, this could possibly mean the end of Ortiz fighting in the octagon, although nobody in the UFC ever seems to retire. As someone that interviewed Tito a few years back, he seemed like a really great guy so from this end I wish him a speedy recovery from whatever the situation is that took the former UFC champion to this point.

Note to Dana White: When I mentioned how little interest I had in Tito Ortiz vs. Chuck Liddell III, I was kidding. The last thing I want to see is Rich Franklin on another Ultimate Fighter season!

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Vitor Belfort returned to UFC in vintage Vitor-style. The Phenom knocked out former UFC champion Rich Franklin in Round 1 at UFC 103. Dana White wasted no time talking about a Belfort vs. Anderson Silva match after the fight. In the eyes of the UFC president, “Belfort is ready.”

The words and immediate hype should come as no surprise to UFC fans. Dana White has been talking about a Belfort vs. Silva fight even before he had Belfort under contract. A few months back White talked about testing Anderson Silva with Vitor Belfort. It looks like the test will come sooner than later for the UFC middleweight champion.

Belfort’s win was one of the most impressive wins of the year. I never though of Rich Franklin as an elite fighter, however he is no pushover. Belfort’s win was about more than just a speedy onslaught of strikes. Belfort was a posed, mature fighter who waited patiently for his opening. Once Belfort saw the open, he took it, and it was lights out for Franklin.

Rich Franklin has only been knocked out once in the first round in his MMA career. Ironically it was Anderson Silva who knocked Rich Franklin out with a knee in Round 1 to win his UFC middleweight title. Even more impressive is that this was Belfort’s second straight first round knockout. Belfort’s previous victim was Matt Lindland. Lindland is also no pushover and the wins are extremely impressive for Belfort.

The odd man out is Dan Henderson. Hendo was promised the next title shot at Anderson Silva. Silva has yet to agree to a match with Henderson. After seeing he wasn’t interested in fighting Henderson, Silva reportedly suffered an elbow injury. The timing of the injury is curious to say the least. Henderson would be a fool to agree to a Belfort fight before the Silva match. Henderson has already turned down opponents citing that he will wait out his promised match with Silva.

Vitor Belfort is for real and I am now a believer. Belfort can and will give Anderson Silva his toughest challenge to date in the UFC. Silva has never seen anyone with the speed of Belfort. Additionally, I don’t know if Silva has ever fought anyone with the confidence of Vitor Belfort. The looks on the faces of most of Anderson Silva’s opponents before the bell scream of defeat. Belfort won’t be scared and will probably be the first guy in UFC to fight Silva who believes that he can beat him.

For now, the sky is the limit for Belfort. Belfort could jump up to 205 and fight the Machida-Rua winner for the UFC light heavyweight title. Belfort had a hard time getting to 195 for the Franklin fight. Dropping down to 185 could be a big issue for Belfort. Fighting Silva at a catch weight is a solution, but that would negate UFC’s opportunity at a UFC middleweight title fight. The Anderson Silva talk is nice, but it may be in everyone’s best interest for Belfort to stick around at 195 or 205.

Vitor Belfort Highlights!


Thanks to MMAFanhouse for the tip!

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UFC 103 is headlined by the return of former UFC champion, Vitor Belfort. Belfort matches up against another former champ and The Ultimate Fighter coach, Rich Franklin. The future of the UFC middleweight division may be decided on Saturday night. A win by Belfort will no doubt put him at the head of the line for Anderson Silva.

Make no mistake about it, this fight is set up for Belfort to win. Franklin is someone Belfort should easily beat. As a former UFC middleweight champion, the win would give Belfort instant credibility with UFC fans. This is the ideal matchup for a returning hero in Belfort. The only question remains is whether Vitor Belfort UFC circa 1997 shows up or Vitor UFC circa 2005.

I have written before about my disbelief in Rich Franklin. I don’t think he is a top MMA fighter. I think the talent in the division has passed him by. I think that Franklin was king of the division at a time when the division was weak. Franklin gets the star treatment due to his appearances on The Ultimate Fighter. Franklin did beat Wanderlei Silva but he did nothing during that fight to convince me that he can beat a guy like Belfort.

Belfort loves to attack fast. Belfort is a striker with 12 knockouts. I can’t remember the last time I ever saw Rich Franklin win a slugfest. Franklin played a tremendous counter-strike game against Silva at UFC 99. Belfort is faster than Silva and will attack. Franklin’s only chance is to take Belfort to the ground and tire him out. Belfort is vulnerable on the ground and Franklin could pull off the upset if that is his game plan.

The stakes are huge for UFC. Dana White signed Vitor Belfort back with intentions of booking a UFC middleweight title fight against Anderson Silva. This fight at UFC 103 will be at a catch weight of 195. Not only will Belfort lose a ton of appeal with a loss Saturday, but White will be forced to make a match nobody wants to see. White would have to make Franklin-Anderson Silva III. By all rights, Franklin deserves it with a win but I can tell you that I have zero interest in seeing that fight.

My prediction is a win for Vitor Belfort. Belfort’s last win was an explosive knockout over Matt Lindland in January. Matt Lindland is no joke and at one time was a number one ranked fighter in some circles. Belfort has looked reborn in his last four fights and hasn’t lost since 2006. I predict a Belfort win, TKO, one round and Franklin goes down.

Interestingly enough, Vegas currently has Franklin as the favorite. Bodog.com has Franklin at -145 while BetUs.com has Franklin at -140. I am not a betting man but if I was, I’d run to grab those lines. This is definitely a fight I don’t see Vegas getting right.

Frank Trigg returns to the UFC after a very lengthy absence. Trigg returns to face The Ultimate Fighter alumni Josh Koscheck. At 37, I don’t think Trigg is going to be able to hang with Koscheck. Trigg was tapping back in 2005 when he was 33 years old. I just think Koshcheck is too quick for Trigg. Koshcheck is a huge favorite at -500 at Bodog.com and -400 at BetUs.com. Trigg is a +300 at both places. At +300, Trigg may not be a bad bet for an upset. Rarely do all favorites win on UFC events.

Mirko Cro Cop returns to heavyweight in UFC. Even after all of the swearing by Dana White, UFC took back Cro Cop. Cro Cop’s prime is well behind him. Cro Cop would have arguably lost his last fight if it wasn’t for a poke. Junior dos Santos is no joke and is undoubtedly matched to win this one. Crop Cop is an underdog at +105 on both books. Cro Cop hasn’t shown me anything in years. Santos knocked out Fabrico Werdum last year and will likely do the same to Cro Cop. Keep your eyes out on Santos over the next few months. He could be your next UFC heavyweight champion.

The entire scheduled UFC 103 fight card is…
Vitor Belfort vs. Rich Franklin
Junior Dos Santos vs. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic
Martin Kampmann vs. Paul Daley
Josh Koscheck vs. Frank Trigg
Hermes Franca vs. Tyson Griffin
Efrain Escudero vs. Cole Miller
Jim Miller vs. Steve Lopez
Rafaello Oliveira Vs. Nik Lentz
Rick Story vs. Brian Foster
Tomasz Drwal vs. Drew McFedries
Jason Brilz vs. Eliot Marshall
Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Igor Pokrajac
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rob Emerson

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Check out this clip of UFC star Tito Ortiz interviewing fellow UFC star Vitor Belfort. Tito and Vitor talk about the upcoming Belfort vs. Rich Franklin UFC 103 match. Ortiz really does treat this as an interview and asks great questions. It is easy for Ortiz to be humble when he’s interviewing someone he has beaten. I wonder if he would have been so gracious with Chuck Liddell or Randy Couture.

A really cool moment is when Ortiz and Belfort reminisce about their fight at UFC 51 Super Saturday. It seemed like a genuine moment of respect between two future UFC Hall of Fame fighters.

The clip comes courtesy of MMA Connected on Sportsnet.

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One of the most polarizing figures in UFC history will return to the octagon. A month after being banned from the UFC Fan Expo, Tito Ortiz is now welcomed back into UFC. Dana White also announced the return of Vitor Belfort at UFC 103.

The news ends a long and hostile feud between UFC and Tito Ortiz. Ortiz left the UFC last year after fulfilling his contract. The breakup was not pretty. The return of the former light heavyweight champion comes as a big surprise for many in the MMA community.

Things were rocky from the start of his last UFC return. However, tensions really hit an all-time level after the fallout of the Ortiz-Dana White boxing match. Ortiz backed out of the match, while White continued with the event and made a television special out of it. From that point on, things got very ugly throughout the rest of Ortiz’s UFC tenure.

Ortiz was a big fish on the free agent market last year. I have to admit, I expected someone to scoop him up fast. Ortiz had recently talked about Strikeforce and Affliction. Ortiz even talked about a match with Fedor at one point. For numerous reasons, none of those deals ever materialized.

Ortiz’s options slimmed big time when Affliction closed its doors. Other than a new startup, it was unlikely he would receive big money elsewhere. The deal with UFC seemed to be a necessity at this point. For UFC, it is a no lose situation to bring back the Huntingdon Beach Bad Boy. Whether he is still the fighter he once was, he is going to draw money and that is the bottom line.

Ortiz’s last UFC stint was a mixed bag. One could argue that he declined in skill. However, other than Chuck Liddell nobody dominated him. Ortiz went 3-2-1 in his last UFC run. Ortiz’s last bout was a loss to current UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida. Ortiz arguably fought Machida harder than anyone ever has. It was a loss, but it was far from a dominating win from Machida.

What do you do with a Tito Ortiz in 2009? There are several good options. For one, there are a ton of rematches that fans would love to see. Ortiz’s win over Forrest Griffin was very controversial. Rematches with Rashad Evans, Machida, Wanderlei Silva, or Vitor Belfort are also very juicy possibilities.

There are also some great possibilities for new matchups. Ortiz against either Rich Franklin or Dan Henderson would do good business. A superfight with Anderson Silva could do UFC 100 type numbers. A match with Rampage Jackson would surely do tremendous business. The interviews and hype alone could turn this one into a record breaker.

There is always the Ultimate Fighter. Ortiz turned around his image as a head coach in season three. Ortiz was arguably the best coach in the history of the show. I’d bring him back on the show for a season. Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, or Forrest Griffin would be great opposing coaches. I would not be surprised whatsoever to see Ortiz back on the show in seasons 11 or 12.

Tito announced that he will fight before the end of the year. No official date was given on the press conference call. Dana White did mention that they are working on a Marc Coleman fight The Coleman fight would be a big disappointment in my opinion. Coleman has been a rather boring fighter since returning to UFC.

In other press conference news: Franklin-Hendo 2 is off for UFC 103. Rich Franklin will now fight Vitor Belfort at UFC 103. Belfort returns to UFC for the first time in over four years. The fight will be a light heavyweight bout. I think Rich Franklin is in big trouble. Dan Henderson “is next in line” to challenge Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight title challenger. Both of these fights are much more appealing than Henderson-Franklin 2.

Dana also had a lot to say throughout the call about signning Fedor Emelianenko. “Co-promotion with M-1 is “impossible, it’ll never happen.” But “the deal’s not dead. They can call me. Trust me, we did everything to make a Fedor Emelianenko deal happen. It’s insanity for them to turn down a deal like this. I was f**king miserable when Fedor Emelianenko turned down UFC deal. These guys don’t want to make a deal. If they do, call me.”

As reported, it seems that it all comes down to M1’s co-promotional demands in making the deal. “The only sticking point is the co-promotion. Otherwise, we gave them everything.”

Dana took a shot at boxing on the call. “Everyone wants to see Pacquiao vs. Mayweather, boxing promoters won’t give them that fight. UFC gives fans fights they want.” I find that statement a little ironic, considering that every MMA fan in the world wants to see Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brock Lesnar. If Manny vs. Mayweather happens first, Dana is going to have a lot of egg on his face. I’ll go out on a limb and tell you that I expect to see Manny vs. Mayweather way before I see Brock vs. Fedor. I hope I am wrong. – Thanks to MMAFanhouse for the quotes.

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UFC 99 featured the comeback of two former MMA champions against one another. Not only did Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin deliver, but the Axe Murderer gave Ultimate Fighting Championship fans a finish for the highlight films.

Franklin wound up getting a unanimous decision over Silva. Personally, I didn’t find the decision so unanimous. I will concede that Franklin was more active during the fight. However, I will say that Silva caused enough damage throughout the fight to get the win.

Silva pressed during the fight, while Franklin sat back and countered. Franklin had Silva’s timing down for most of the fight. Silva was able to connect a few times throughout the fight and was very close to finishing. I am not a big Franklin fan, but he definitely showed me something by hanging in there and coming back.

Silva looked exhausted by the start of Round 2. Joe Rogan pointed out that Silva had to cut 12 pounds to make weight. Silva was fighting at a lower weight than past UFC fights. I would dare say that this was the biggest different of the fight.

Silva was looking for a homerun punch in the final round. Silva seemed rejuvenated and even played up to the fans at times. Silva was the aggressor, while Franklin had no desire to engage. Silva was desperately looking for a clinch and some knees but Franklin evaded two attempts.

The final 30 seconds of the Round 3 will make the highlight films. Silva stood up from a Franklin takedown. Franklin was still holding Silva from behind and leaning on the cage. Silva began to fire rocket elbows at Franklin’s face, reminding me of Gary Goodrich from the old UFC days. Franklin was trapped and saved by the bell. Another 30 seconds and Silva would have pulled off one of the most exciting knockouts in UFC history.

For Franklin, the win puts him right back in the mix for a shot at Anderson Silva. Lord knows I have no interest in seeing a third Silva-Franklin match. I do think it would be a great match for a Spike TV special. Otherwise, save us another destruction of Franklin.

For Silva, some interesting decisions will be made. Dana White talked before the fight of a possible Silva-Silva fight. At this point, the only way that would happen is if Forrest Griffin pulls off an upset. Additionally, I don’t think Wanderlei should fight under light heavyweight anymore. His days as Pride FC Middleweight champion are long over. He needs to stick to light heavyweight if he had that much trouble cutting weight.

Silva-Franklin wasn’t the only finish people were talking about after UFC 99. Silva’s old Pride FC mate, Mirko Cro Cop returned to UFC action for what looks like his swan song. Cro Cop defeated Mostapha Al-Turk, but it was the post-fight press conference that made the news for Cro Cop. Dana White went nuts on Cro Cop announcing that he was finished in UFC at the post-show press conference.

White had signed the fight reportedly without a paper contract. White was under the impression that Cro Cop was back for a three-fight deal. Allegedly Cro Cop informed White after the fight that he had signed a three-fight exclusive deal with DREAM.
“Isn’t that a dirty [expletive] thing to do?” “He [ expletive] me. The first time in the history of the company I do one over the phone. He promised me a three-fight deal and he [ expletive] me.”

“Isn’t that a dirty [expletive] thing to do?” White asked rhetorically after being queried about Filipovic’s deal with DREAM. “He [ expletive] me. The first time in the history of the company I do one over the phone. He promised me a three-fight deal and he [ expletive] me.”

“He didn’t keep his word,” White said, who said he’d had a two-hour talk with Filipovic on the day Filipovic texted and asked to be able to return. “He talked about honor and all this other [expletive] and he [ expletive] me.

“He fed me this bull [expletive] about wanting to take a run for the title, and what I think he did was, he went out and did this. He turned down every other [expletive] fighter I offered him, because I needed him to fight Cain. He didn’t just poke Al-Turk; he poked me, too.”

Hey, I don’t feel sorry for Dana White one bit. Here is a guy that has stepped on a lot of throats to achieve his success. He flat out got played. He is the idiot that went into this with his guard down and didn’t sign a contract. One could argue that Dana White got a taste of his own medicine.

I don’t even think it is that big of a loss for UFC. As an old Pride FC fan, I love Cro Cop. Cro Cop hasn’t looked impressive at all in UFC. As a matter of a fact, he got very lucky with an eye poke at UFC 99. I don’t think it is that great of a loss at all here to UFC.

Cain Velasquez likely locked in a title fight against the winner of Frank Mir-Brock Lesnar with his win over Cheick Kongo. This was a hell of a fight. You would never know that this was a fight between two heavyweights. The entire fight was fought at a face pace and the two were flying around like lightweights. Kongo should a ton of resilience throughout the fight and won me over as a fan.

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