| Rage In The Cage XVIII Johnny "Wildfire" Rage |
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In this week’s edition of RITC, we tackle UFC 82, World Victory Road, upcoming UFC pay per views, our Drew
Hall (Franklin) experience and my thoughts on Elite XC being on CBS. Lets not waste any more time and find out who
“Wildfire” is burning for.
UFC 82: Pride Of A Champion was this past weekend and was a solid event. Yours truly made the rounds at the
weigh-ins and got to talk with fighters and, most surprisingly, many of my “Torches.” The Q & A with Big Nog was
awesome, aside from the morons trying to ask Joe Silva questions about Randy and Fedor. NEWSFLASH, idiots:
outside of, like, 5 of you, no one is talking about that fight anymore. I want to see it, but I remembered that I was at the
UFC weigh-ins talking to Big Nog and Goldy, not at the local watering hole with countless hordes of toothless women.
Congrats to Anderson Silva for unifying the titles. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.
World Victory Road had their first show yesterday and it was pretty much as expected. I don’t really want to bash
the company but nothing exciting happened and it didn’t really make a splash with most people in the MMA community.
It had Gomi, who I think is totally overrated and won’t fight in America again. If you didn’t know, Gomi has zero wins
while fighting on American soil and before his win over Bang Ludwig, he got choked out by a dude that was high. Josh
Barnett was also on the card as, questionably, the #1 fighter in the world but there was really no hype with this fight
either. Not sure what you’re trying to do here, Victory Road, but maybe you should put some bigger names against
these marquis guys; that way you could create some buzz around your promotion. Well, I did forget that it is Japan and
the whole Legit MMA Superstar vs. Tomato Can is pure gold for them.
April is going to be crucial for the UFC, as they will hold two events in the month. The first is an Ultimate Fight
Night on April 2 and the second is UFC 83: Pierre vs. Serra 2. I’m really looking forward to the Ultimate Fight Night,
but the same cannot be said about UFC 83. I mentioned before the one-sidedness to most fights. I even had some
moron claim that Maia would just submit Ed Herman within a minute. Well, I think that Herman has come a long way
since being submitted by Jason McDonald (who is a cool cat and super nice.) Maia hasn’t proved his striking at all and I’
m sure that Herman will make him stand with him. But back to the Ultimate Fight Night Card and its amazing lineup.
Spike TV recently announced that the card would be 3 hours long, which is great for UFC fans because we get a chance
to see our favorites on the card if some of the main fights don’t go the full 3 Rounds.
While in Columbus, there was a spotting of the endangered “Wettis Rattus” more commonly
known as Drew Hall, Drew Franklin, or Mr. NC-17, depending on which mood he is in that week.
I’m still amazed that Drew’s house made it across the Ohio River. Bravo, Drew, I wish that you
would’ve been around when I was in the 3rd Grade and I struggled to make it across those rivers
on Oregon Trail. Skippy McMannis told me that Drew had the line of the day when he said that
Kurt Angle could out-wrestle Randy Couture. Are we talking sports entertainment or Greco
Roman? It isn’t ‘96 anymore and Angle is fat and ‘roided out, while Randy is dominant in his
profession. The truth of the matter is that morons like Drew are running to every message board
and spreading this crap. Drew, I’m trying to help you become a better person: stop thinking that
pro wrestlers can just jump into MMA and beat elite fighters. Just for the fun of it, let’s lay down
some fights and I’m sure that Drew will pick the wrestler.
Vader vs. Fedor—Drew: “Well, I think that Vader has the advantage in this fight. His Vader bomb is the real key to
victory.”
Rick Rude vs. Anderson Silva—Drew: “Anderson Silva can’t compete with the Rude Awakening. Rude is probably
going to take Anderson’s wife after this fight. I’m also sure that Rude’s tights will feature Anderson’s wife’s face, circa
1992, ala Jake Roberts.”
Ultimate Warrior vs. Rich Franklin—Drew: “This is a hard one for me, as I love both men equally, in a straight dude
way of course. If the Warrior doesn’t gas out from his run to the ring, he’s got this one in the bag. Rich’s flying body
block defense is too weak. I only hope the cage can withstand the Warrior shaking it after his victory.
Now to my “Spreading Wildfire” segment. In this week’s segment, I’m going to tackle the countless number of
worthless people who have criticized me for my stance on Elite XC landing the CBS TV deal. Whether it was on the
MMAplayground or WNDE message boards, I’ve been attacked for being a UFC nut-hugger and, funniest of all, only
following the UFC while other great companies are growing and building a huge fan base. My stance, no matter what is
said, will always be that Elite XC on CBS is great for Elite XC but terrible for the sport of MMA. My problems with the
deal stem from the fact that Elite XC is going to market Kimbo Slice as their #1 guy. And that’s okay if you’re already a
hardcore MMA fan, but most people don’t know who he is. The fact that Kimbo is sponsored by a major porn
company and completely disregards any rules inside the cage will just add more fuel to the anti-MMA fire. Elite XC has
plenty of great fighters in Gina Carano, Jake Shields, Big Foot Silva, Nick Diaz, KJ Noons, and Ricco Rodriguez. Why
not promote those people as well? I personally think that Gina Carano is the best shot that Elite XC has to draw a high
enough ratings to stay on CBS and pull sponsors into the product. MMA is a great sport, and the few of us that have
supported the sport since it started want it to be around even after we’ve left this earth. The sport is getting watered
down because it’s the next big thing; sadly, that kind of overexposure could lead to a huge downfall two years from
now. Most of the newer fans won’t be around in a few years because they are those people who follow every fad
known to man; the sport must resist temptation and not cater to these fans. After all, it was the diehards who helped
bring MMA to where it is today and it will continue to be us who support it until the end.
Add us on your myspace at www.myspace.com/scrubsportsdotcom
Hall (Franklin) experience and my thoughts on Elite XC being on CBS. Lets not waste any more time and find out who
“Wildfire” is burning for.
UFC 82: Pride Of A Champion was this past weekend and was a solid event. Yours truly made the rounds at the
weigh-ins and got to talk with fighters and, most surprisingly, many of my “Torches.” The Q & A with Big Nog was
awesome, aside from the morons trying to ask Joe Silva questions about Randy and Fedor. NEWSFLASH, idiots:
outside of, like, 5 of you, no one is talking about that fight anymore. I want to see it, but I remembered that I was at the
UFC weigh-ins talking to Big Nog and Goldy, not at the local watering hole with countless hordes of toothless women.
Congrats to Anderson Silva for unifying the titles. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.
World Victory Road had their first show yesterday and it was pretty much as expected. I don’t really want to bash
the company but nothing exciting happened and it didn’t really make a splash with most people in the MMA community.
It had Gomi, who I think is totally overrated and won’t fight in America again. If you didn’t know, Gomi has zero wins
while fighting on American soil and before his win over Bang Ludwig, he got choked out by a dude that was high. Josh
Barnett was also on the card as, questionably, the #1 fighter in the world but there was really no hype with this fight
either. Not sure what you’re trying to do here, Victory Road, but maybe you should put some bigger names against
these marquis guys; that way you could create some buzz around your promotion. Well, I did forget that it is Japan and
the whole Legit MMA Superstar vs. Tomato Can is pure gold for them.
April is going to be crucial for the UFC, as they will hold two events in the month. The first is an Ultimate Fight
Night on April 2 and the second is UFC 83: Pierre vs. Serra 2. I’m really looking forward to the Ultimate Fight Night,
but the same cannot be said about UFC 83. I mentioned before the one-sidedness to most fights. I even had some
moron claim that Maia would just submit Ed Herman within a minute. Well, I think that Herman has come a long way
since being submitted by Jason McDonald (who is a cool cat and super nice.) Maia hasn’t proved his striking at all and I’
m sure that Herman will make him stand with him. But back to the Ultimate Fight Night Card and its amazing lineup.
Spike TV recently announced that the card would be 3 hours long, which is great for UFC fans because we get a chance
to see our favorites on the card if some of the main fights don’t go the full 3 Rounds.
While in Columbus, there was a spotting of the endangered “Wettis Rattus” more commonly
known as Drew Hall, Drew Franklin, or Mr. NC-17, depending on which mood he is in that week.
I’m still amazed that Drew’s house made it across the Ohio River. Bravo, Drew, I wish that you
would’ve been around when I was in the 3rd Grade and I struggled to make it across those rivers
on Oregon Trail. Skippy McMannis told me that Drew had the line of the day when he said that
Kurt Angle could out-wrestle Randy Couture. Are we talking sports entertainment or Greco
Roman? It isn’t ‘96 anymore and Angle is fat and ‘roided out, while Randy is dominant in his
profession. The truth of the matter is that morons like Drew are running to every message board
and spreading this crap. Drew, I’m trying to help you become a better person: stop thinking that
pro wrestlers can just jump into MMA and beat elite fighters. Just for the fun of it, let’s lay down
some fights and I’m sure that Drew will pick the wrestler.
Vader vs. Fedor—Drew: “Well, I think that Vader has the advantage in this fight. His Vader bomb is the real key to
victory.”
Rick Rude vs. Anderson Silva—Drew: “Anderson Silva can’t compete with the Rude Awakening. Rude is probably
going to take Anderson’s wife after this fight. I’m also sure that Rude’s tights will feature Anderson’s wife’s face, circa
1992, ala Jake Roberts.”
Ultimate Warrior vs. Rich Franklin—Drew: “This is a hard one for me, as I love both men equally, in a straight dude
way of course. If the Warrior doesn’t gas out from his run to the ring, he’s got this one in the bag. Rich’s flying body
block defense is too weak. I only hope the cage can withstand the Warrior shaking it after his victory.
Now to my “Spreading Wildfire” segment. In this week’s segment, I’m going to tackle the countless number of
worthless people who have criticized me for my stance on Elite XC landing the CBS TV deal. Whether it was on the
MMAplayground or WNDE message boards, I’ve been attacked for being a UFC nut-hugger and, funniest of all, only
following the UFC while other great companies are growing and building a huge fan base. My stance, no matter what is
said, will always be that Elite XC on CBS is great for Elite XC but terrible for the sport of MMA. My problems with the
deal stem from the fact that Elite XC is going to market Kimbo Slice as their #1 guy. And that’s okay if you’re already a
hardcore MMA fan, but most people don’t know who he is. The fact that Kimbo is sponsored by a major porn
company and completely disregards any rules inside the cage will just add more fuel to the anti-MMA fire. Elite XC has
plenty of great fighters in Gina Carano, Jake Shields, Big Foot Silva, Nick Diaz, KJ Noons, and Ricco Rodriguez. Why
not promote those people as well? I personally think that Gina Carano is the best shot that Elite XC has to draw a high
enough ratings to stay on CBS and pull sponsors into the product. MMA is a great sport, and the few of us that have
supported the sport since it started want it to be around even after we’ve left this earth. The sport is getting watered
down because it’s the next big thing; sadly, that kind of overexposure could lead to a huge downfall two years from
now. Most of the newer fans won’t be around in a few years because they are those people who follow every fad
known to man; the sport must resist temptation and not cater to these fans. After all, it was the diehards who helped
bring MMA to where it is today and it will continue to be us who support it until the end.
Add us on your myspace at www.myspace.com/scrubsportsdotcom
| “It's a very bad thing to become accustomed to good luck.” |
