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Despite the fact that no one wanted to see this fight and we were all looking forward to Diaz squaring off with Mayhem Miller, we're in for some entertaining build up and probably an even better fight. Noons has fired the first shot against Diaz saying this:

"I already got one up on Nick. I beat the crap out of the guy. He’s had a good run, and there’s a lot of build-up for this rematch. We’ve both improved, this is a different weight class now, he’s gotten better, I’ve gotten better…it’s a different situation. But at the end of the day, I’m a true mixed martial artist, I have respect for the sport, and I am a good role model… Nick’s good for entertainment, but I come from a family of fighters. I started early, and I have respect for martial arts. It teaches you discipline, how to become a good person, and I feel that I am. On October 9th, I’m fighting a guy that, if I had a kid, I wouldn’t want him looking up to. He’s a trash-talking, pot-smoking chump… This is beyond a grudge match. I’m going to light him up like a Christmas tree. He’s going to have to kill me to lose. It’s very personal."

Emphasis from Middle Easy. I find it kind of funny that Noons would say that he's a true mixed martial artist. Isn't he a boxer first and an MMA fighter second? Despite how much trouble he's caused and been in before, Diaz is definitely a true mixed martial artist. I'm not a big fan of the way the whole Mayhem thing was handled from the incident in the cage at Strikeforce: Nashville to the ensuing PR disaster with Miller repeatedly calling him out and him never really responding. His camp did finally say that Strikeforce never offered the fight and instead this is what we're getting.

It wasn't the next Diaz fight that I wanted to see but I'm excited nonetheless. The whole, "He's going to have to kill me to lose" line has been said many times before and it doesn't hold much water but it shows the underlying issues these two have. Can't wait for the next shot.

We really don't want to see this anymore.

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The toughest thing for professional athletes to do is let go. They can never seem to know when it's time to hang em up. Brett Favre will never actually make up his mind. Michael Jordan as a Wizard was a horrific sight but he just couldn't help it. Doesn't matter how big of a star they seem to be, they just don't know when to quit. Maybe it's the passion for the game. Maybe it's money. Maybe they are afraid of what life will be like when they leave. But it's a sad spectacle to watch these men painfully go forward when the game has clearly passed them by. You could argue that hasn't happened to Favre yet but it's coming fast.

Ken Shamrock has fallen into this category. Many would argue that he's been in this category for some time now. Jeremy Bottor of Heavy:

"Ken Shamrock used to be the baddest man on the planet. In the early days of mixed martial arts, it was tough to find anybody who inspired more fear than Shamrock. His muscled and ripped frame...his intensity was unequaled in the sport at the time, and his bag of submissions made him a very real threat to any opponent he faced during those early years. But those early years were a long time ago, and Shamrock is no longer even a shell of the man he once was."

Shamrock used to be the man. Eventually though, as happens to all the greats, younger and better stars came along that took over. When that happens it's time to bow out and walk away knowing that you are a legend. The problem is that Ken just won't walk away. The longer he stays in the sport and takes ridiculous fights like this next one against Jonathen Ivey is all the more time for him to damage his legacy. How long before we forget about the beginning and only remember the end?

If you don't know who Jonathen Ivey is, and no one can blame you, here is Ray Hui from MMA Fighting to help out:

Shamrock's opponent, Ivey (29-42), is a heavyweight who has been around the sport since 1998. Ivey holds a laundry list of losses to UFC veterans in Jeremy Horn, Travis Wiuff, Ben Rothwell, Justin Eilers, Dan Severn, Jake O'Brien, Ricco Rodriguez, Gan McGee and Sam Hoger. His list of losses even includes a future UFC veteran, as his most recent fight this past May was a TKO loss to Sean McCorkle, who is set to make his UFC debut later this month at UFC 119. Ivey might be most notable for actually landing a "People's Elbow" in a mixed martial arts bout.

Why? What is the point of a fight like this? Even if it's for money, they can't possibly be paying him all that much. This is a guy that's in the UFC Hall of Fame. The whole thing just feels sad and useless.

Props go to Kaleb Kelchner over at Watch Kalib Run. He found the Ivey-People's Elbow video for me while we were talking in the comments section of Bloody Elbow. I was going to use it for a piece on my Pro Wrestling Moves That Work in MMA series but never got around to it. Here it is:

Yes, that is the man that Shamrock will be fighting. Again I ask; why?

Even though it makes the most sense, we won't be getting this fight.

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The announcement that Nick Diaz would rematch KJ Noons on October 9th was met with mostly scorn and contempt. Fans wanted this rematch but they wanted it a long time ago. Now, the timing just isn't right. It reeks of desperate match-making. Jonathen Snowden wrote a scathing piece about what a failure this has been on the part of Strikeforce to miss an opportunity to put together Diaz vs Mayhem Miller. He made an interesting remark in that post:

This would have been the most talked about Strikeforce fight of the fall. Instead we're going to get just another fight, with just another bland build. I never thought I'd say this to Nick Diaz, a fighter I once called "the greatest man to ever live." But the situation demands it:

Don't be scared homie.

Now finally we have a reply from the camp of Nick Diaz. On Tapout Radio, Cesar Gracie brings us the info we've been waiting to hear:

'We've never been offered that fight. Some people may be saying 'are you ducking Miller?' but we've never been offered that fight with Miller. He didn't duck him. It was brought up in a brief conversation with Strikeforce...it was agreed that whoever they want to put in there, it was their decision. As our contract works, if there's a different fight that Nick has to go move up in weight, well then there's some negotiating room and what I can say is that if you do pick Miller, I would like to see it at 170. If Miller can't make 170, we're very open to a catchweight however for Nick to have to go up in weight to 185 to accommodate Miller, it just doesn't make sense.

"Number one, Miller's record doesn't justify anyone having to come to him. His last five fights he's won twice. Nick won seven in a row, he's a champion. It's more of a fan-favorite fight so we'll do it, but probably at a catchweight but if Miller isn't willing to do that , then 'don't be scared homie' may apply to him."

"What if he called out Gilbert Melendez, would he tell Gil to move to 185 so he can fight? Its ridiculous. Why even bother to call him out? I would probably ask to fight someone more important in the fight world today if Nick is moving up to 185. We're above that."

Transcription via Middle Easy. This is an interesting development and exposes the matchmaking decisions of Strikeforce. If Diaz is open to the fight and Mayhem has been everywhere already promoting it then what is the reason not to do it? I can't think of a single good reason not to. They could use the excuse that it wouldn't make sense from a sporting perspective but when you are Strikeforce you need to take what you can get, when you can get it. Opportunities like this don't come along all the time. It's too bad they've blown yet another perfect opportunity for a fight that would interest everyone.

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Alexey Oleinik def. Mike Hayes via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Jose Vega def. Danny Tims via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Lisa Ward def. Aisling Daly via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Steve Carl def. Tyler Stinson via technical submission (guillotine) - Round 1, 2:30
Zak Cummings def. Rudy Bears via submission (D'arce choke) – Round 1, 1:27
Kevin Croom def. Brian Davidson via submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 2, 3:22
John Ott def. Brian Imes via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Jeb Chiles def. Demetrius Richards via submission (kimura) – Round 2, 3:51

Bellator really got lost in the shuffle this week. With all the major media outlets largely focusing on UFC 118 this show got very little coverage. By the way, the Heavyweight tournament? Not a great idea.

The next few UFC PPV cards will feature a freak show fight in James Toney-Randy Couture and the Heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. It's well publicized how much of an impact pro wrestling has had on MMA in North America. The biggest drawing star in the history of the UFC is a man who made his name in the pro wrestling business. We've seen Bobby Lashley jump over to mixed results. Dave Bautista is trying to break into MMA. I'm sure we'll see more and more crossover as the sport gets more popular, if it does. This all led to me asking the question....how would The Rock do if he decided to come to the UFC?

Athletically speaking, I think he would be on the same level as a guy like Lesnar and way ahead of Lashley and Bautista. He's got a background as a former college football player with the University of Miami and of course, all his time with the WWE. He's always been pretty explosive with great size mixed in with speed. He has all the physical tools that, if combined with dedication and training, could make him a very good fighter.

The main thought to me is how well could it sell on PPV? Think of Lesnar. As stated earlier he made his name in the WWE. He debuted in mid 2002 and left in mid 2004. That's only 2 years worth of time, albeit spent almost entirely at the top holding the title. After leaving he tried out for the NFL and went over to Japan. He didn't debut in the UFC until February of 2008. That's almost an entire 4 year span of time that he wasn't in the public eye. Not only that, but he was crucified by many wrestling fans for leaving the way he did including during the absolute debacle of a match with Goldberg at WreslteMania XX. I'll be doing an entire post on that match so look for that in the near future.

Anyway, despite all of that he came in at UFC 81 and drew 600,000 buys in his first fight. His second fight did a little better and he hasn't drawn less than a million since then. If Brock, who The Rock put over at Summerslam 2002 by dropping the belt to him and making him look like a million bucks, can draw this well just based on those factors, imagine how well The Rock could do.

The Rock was a big time draw for the WWE, only ever rivaled by Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan. His merchandise sold like hot cakes and the insane amount of coin that he made as the babyface foil to Triple H's monster heel in the year 2000 is unsurpassed. Now that he's gone on to star in more than a few movies, even though it's mostly Disney flicks, there are very few people who don't know who The Rock is. He's a marketing machine in and of himself. He could sell a PPV with absolutely no help at all. It wouldn't matter who his opponent is or if he might win or lose. It would only matter that he would be there.

So what's the number that I think he could pull? 2 million buys. The key to that number is that he would have to have the fight in the UFC. As much as he can market himself and pull his weight even without it, if the UFC did a complete media blitz the way you know they would, it would easily break the UFC PPV record. It might even break the Mayweather-De La Hoya record. Would the Rock have any interest in MMA? We've seen him at recent events such as UFC 116. Here is an interview he did way back in 2007 for ESPN in which he discusses MMA:

....mixed martial arts is just phenomenal. It is so hot, and it's clear to me why it's so popular. I have a ton of love and respect for those guys. I've become friends with a bunch of those guys and they have my support. I think mixed martial arts requires an amazing athleticism, and those guys must put together a strategy and a game plan every single time they go out and fight because it's not one-dimensional, it's not so predictable. On any given day, the greatest can go down. I think it's really exciting to see the success that MMA is having right now. Everything that that sport provides and all the attention that people are diverting to that entity right now is well-deserved, and it's -- well, it's a big deal and I'm excited about it.

Would this ever happen? No. Dana White is not totally against going the "freak show" route as evidenced by his putting on of the Couture-Toney fight. I think the money that could be made off of it would entice him enough to put on a Rock fight. But it wouldn't happen because The Rock would never do it. That doesn't mean we can't dream about how it would be.

A ton of journalists in the MMA media, of which I'm not really a part of, I'm a blogger, are all over the oxygen canister controversy surrounding KJ Noons and King Mo. These tweets just came down the line from Josh Gross:

This is what I learned w/one phone call and confirmed w/one text regarding this faux story about the 02 canisters: Mo Lawal's mgmt ... OK'd use of 02 w/Texas commission, ringside doctor, referee (McCarthy got ok from commission) & Strikeforce. Noons in same lockerroom.

Here how I feel about this and that's the key phrase. I feel like they were still doing something they should not be able to do. Just because they were allowed to do so doesn't make it right. You remember the big 1998 home run season that Mark McGwire had? Remember how he did it, with all those steroids he was using? What he was doing at the time was totally legal. He didn't break any rules. He was crucified for it just the same because people understood it was wrong. He could have went to Bud Selig and got the okay to use what he was using, and he would have at the time because it wasn't on any banned list that MLB had at that time, and it would not have mattered. He still would have been cheating.

I completely stand by my statement in regards to what these two did. These canisters gave them a boost, even if it is a small one, right before their fights began. The guys they were fighting did not get that same boost. That means they had an edge going into the fight that was obtained through means not of their own. This should not be allowed. Again, that is my stance and my view point on this issue. Just wanted to clarify my previous statements.

MMA Junkie is running a story now in which King Mo says the following:

While he might have been dumb, one thing he wasn't was enhanced, which is what many observers called him after he was spotting sucking oxygen from a canister between rounds (he has an endorsement with the company that makes the breathing aid).

"No effect, man," he said of his O2 use during the fight. "People want to make a big deal about it, but it's not a big deal. I used it in training camp for a week, (and) it helped me slow my heart rate down and focus my breathing – that's about it. I could have done it without the oxygen can."

If it had no effect then why would you be using it? That makes zero sense to me. I'm not on any crusade against Noons or Lawal, in fact I enjoy them both and like watching them fight, but that's bogus. You wouldn't use something if it had no effect. It's funny because he says it had no effect then goes on to state the effects it had for him in training. A bit odd to me but that's his story.

Somehow we should not be surprised by this. Despite the obvious reasons that it's not okay for oxygen canisters to be used right before a fight starts, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation thinks it's completely okay. Not only did they find the oxygen use to be okay, which I stress, in my eyes, is not at all acceptable, but they also seem to think that everything else about the night went just great. MMA Junkie has the story:

Susan Stanford, the TDLR's Public Information Officer, today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal and K.J. Noons were within their rights to use bottled oxygen prior to competition.

Additionally, the TDLR found no lapses in officiating with Noon's second-round TKO of Jorge Gurgel or Chad Griggs' second-round TKO of Bobby Lashley.

The argument they make is that it is not a banned substance and they even consulted with the cageside physician and he said it was okay. So I guess that settles that. It's pretty easy to me to see why it's a problem. It's been researched to death and guess what? It improves an athletes performance. It gives them a bigger gas tank. That's an unfair advantage if the guy is taking it right before the fight starts. How is that acceptable? They love a crusade against steroids but don't mind things like this? Unbelievable.

As bad as that is, it doesn't end with that. Anyone who watched the show knows there were issues with both the KJ Noons-Jorge Gurgel fight and the Bobby Lashley-Chad Griggs fight. However, as you can see above, the commission finds no lapses in officiating. I'm calling bullshit on this one. More from Junkie:

"[TDLR] representative Greg Alvarez said the strike was already started when the (final) bell rang," Stanford said. "That's the position of TDLR. No action will be taken against the referee."

This is in reference to the knee that Noons landed on Gurgel at the end of the fight. Here's a question in regards to this statement they've made. How does it matter if the bell had began to ring? Wait a minute, what bell? The fight gets stopped because the ref steps in. The ref had already clearly stepped in to stop the fight when Noons threw the knee. That's only part of the problem. The ref made several clear mistakes prior to this happening. Noons barely beat the horn, and possibly didn't, in the first round when he floored Gurgel with a huge left hook. Clearly wobbly and on queer street, there is no reason for Gurgel to be allowed to continue. The ref had to literally pull him to his corner.

You only get a break of one minute between rounds so of course Gurgel was still out of it coming into round two. He was slow with his punches and had zero reaction time. So of course, Noons floors him again with an overhand right and another left hook. Gurgel goes down and Noons stops thinking the ref would jump in, like he very clearly should have, to stop the fight. The referee actually starts to go in as if he is going to do so then inexplicably stops and lets the fight continue because he sees Gurgel make a lame dive at Noons leg. As the ref backs off again, Noons looks at him wondering why the fight is being allowed to continue before unleashing more shots on the clearly unable to defend himself Gurgel. The ref wavers but finally steps in to stop it and while doing so Noons throws the knee. But hey, there was no lapse in judgement on that one.

In regards to the Lashley stand up they had this to say:

"The referee felt there was a lull in action, and he had gotten them to their feet when he saw the cut," Stanford said. "[The referee] had the doctor look at it, and then started the action again on their feet."

The Combative Sports Program's statutes state that a referee is allowed to restart fighters on their feet after a lull in action.

Okay, so apparently the rules say that it was perfectly fine to do what the referee did. Here's the thing about that. It's a stupid rule that makes no sense. Lashley had worked his way to full mount on Griggs. He may not have been doing a whole lot of damage but Griggs had done absolutely nothing to get out of that position. He should have to be the one who gets out of that, not the referee letting him out because he felt there was a lull in action. That's not cool at all. That would be like a referee forcing a coach to call a deep pass play in an NFL game because a team has had too many consecutive 4 yard rushing plays. It's ridiculous and directly led to the result of the fight.

After the ill advised decision to restart the fight with both fighters standing, Lashley immediately lunged for Griggs leg and held on while Griggs threw many a vicious elbow to the side of Lashley's head. That never would have happened if the fight was restarted where it should have been with Lashley back in full mount. Would he have lost the fight anyway? Knowing what we know now about him having to be taken to the hospital for severe dehydration right afterward means we can say with confidence that he probably would have. That does not excuse the fact that the referee made a poor judgement call. I don't care if there is a lull in action, you don't stand a guy up when he has such an advantageous position. You make the other fighter work to get out of it. Big John must have been shaking his head in the back.

Credit: Esther Lin / STRIKEFORCE

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The always insightful Jim Ross updated his personal blog this afternoon with some thoughts on last night's Strikeforce: Houston card. Obviously he had a lot to say about Bobby Lashley: 

Bobby Lashley lost for the first time Saturday night by technical knockout in an ugly effort that exposed Bobby's lack of MMA technique specifically Lashley's ability to utilize submissions. Bobby did not look good, seemed to fatigue, and was too heavy/thick from this fan's observation. I still think that Lashley has a shot at a successful MMA career but he's got lots of work to do in a high level training center and to mentally commit 100% to his new vocation. He also needs to physically downsize ... If Bobby decides to have one more go at it and loses again, I would be surprised to see him remain in MMA. That's pure, individual speculation.

I think JR nailed it on the head with this observation. Lashley has always looked comically overdeveloped. While his beach muscles may look good in the pro wrestling world they are definitely a detriment to his MMA career as those muscles needed more oxygen than his body could absorb (aka HE GASSED!). While JR may think that his next loss will be his last I would not be surprised if he does not fight again. Lashley has been criticized for taking on less than stellar competition while openly stating he would like to fight the biggest names Strikeforce has to offer. Now that a relative unknown has knocked him off course it's tough to take Lashley seriously when he says he'll fight Fedor Emelianenko or Alistair Overeem. 

If Strikeforce now signs Bautista and Dave then would fight Bobby Lashley then the fight would be nothing more than merely an "attraction fight" and will obviously not be a highly skilled MMA contest between two, finely tuned and experienced MMA fighters. Notice that I did not say that the fight wouldn't garner a TV rating or create a buzz within the MMA community and in the TV world if promoted properly. I don't see it as a PPV fight but perhaps not a bad choice for CBS, if they are still in play.

Would this even be a viable fight at this point? Lashley is already on record saying that he will take this fight if it is his next fight. JR said that Bautista is still recovering from lingering injuries suffered during his waning WWE days. Combine that with the fact that he does not even have a contract with Strikeforce yet and it is looking as if this "dream match" is pretty far off in the horizon. If Lashley does decide to get back in the cage I can't see him being idle for too long as he'll be looking to avenge last night's loss. If this fight is ever going to happen then Strikeforce needs to go the extra mile and set up a four man tournament consisting of Lashley, Bautista, Herschel Walker and Jose Canseco. I'd buy that for a dollar!

Gus Johnson is ill informed that pro wrestling blood is fake. That statement made Johnson sound bad and underscored many in MMA's pro wrestling bias. Mauro Ranallo understands pro wrestling better than any of his broadcast partners even though Frank Shamrock knows the upside and downside of the pro wrestling biz. Ranallo and Shamrock are the team that the Showtime people should hang their hat on as Johnson feels as if he's a corporate hire and for the wrong reasons.

I really like Gus Johnson for his work during March Madness but he is absolutely brutal when calling MMA. I understand that Pro Wrestling is the mouth breathing, knuckle dragging, neck beard having cousin of MMA but to make such an egregious statement blows me away. While this statement was nowhere near as bad as his classic "Sometimes these things happen in MMA" call it still made him come across as extremely disrespectful.

The rest of his blog, which covers topics such as the WWE's Asian tour, MMA fighters who can't talk and Skandor Akbar, can be read here.