In the always popular world of amateur biz analysis, why not ask about the first Germany card? No one has said a whole lot about how its doing ticket sales wise, so let me give you, our reader, an update, thanks to the wonderous power of derticketservice.de’s search engine:

-As of Friday morning, you and ten of your friends could occupy seats in row 8 on the floor altogether. Or, if you actually wanted to be even closer, the center stands section’s front row had a block of 6 open. Sections 104 and 105 are already in red, which means either they sold out, or, more likely, they weren’t really open to begin with and will instead occupy guests, press, and officials. If you’re a single though, you’re in luck. Take a corner and you’re as close as row 3.

-In fact, you can see where they’re gonna place long shot cameras, because they’d decided to just close those sections off altogether. I suppose they’re not needed, really. You can also see where group sales have gone: good luck over in 208-212 or 606 & 607, Dan Hardy fans.

-Middle and upper bowl? Let’s just say I bet a lot of buses are being reserved for service to and from Rammstein Air Force Base. 

For those who’ve paid already, I’m sure you’ll have a good time at European Vale Tudo 8  UFC 99. For those waiting, be patient. 2 for ones are sure to come. For those serving the US overseas, I can tell you from experience that nothing makes a long coach ride in Germany quite like a extra big Toblerone or some Lindt.

In the 24 months since PRIDE was finally announced to be ending as we knew it, many things have changed in the MMA landscape, though perhaps not to the level that was often argued it would be. In retrospect. PRIDE’s collapse and the subsequent reconstitution of the Japanese MMA scene is seen today as a mixed bag. Do not let the arguments that it was any sort of success sway you: The purchase of PRIDE and the subsequent activity has been nothing less than an unmitigated failure, one given a pass on account of “difficulty” with varying factions, something the companies that have followed in its wake rarely get from English language media.

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The above video is part one of the 2008 Leth Wei “Fight of the Year,” according to Setsuna, a frequent visitor to Myanmar who also frequents our forums.

For the uninformed, Leth Wei is a martial art from Myanmar (Burma), and its contests are essentially a bareknuckle form of Muay Thai — including strikes with fists, elbows, knees and kicks, and notably, with headbutts legal and fewer restrictions on takedowns. Unfortunately, Leth Wei footage is only available on VCD’s from Myanmar which feature some offbeat instant replays and sound effects… but I think you’ll agree the action is pretty spectacular. It is not for the faint of heart, and I don’t care if it ever becomes legal here, but it is fascinating.

I have heard that Lone Chaw, who is wearing the white shorts and fighting out of the red corner in the video, is the sport’s biggest star. His opponent, wearing blue, is Yan Gyi Aung and is moving up to “open weight” to challenge Chaw.

Click here for part one, if the video fails to embed properly on your screen above.

Click here for Part Two

Click here for Part Three

Just a day or so ago, Frank Shamrock revealed to the world something that, well, most of us were pretty aware of: Ken Shamrock is broke. The immediate reaction from the few people who cared to reply over at BE.com (where, incidentally, our ratings are now used as part of their USA Today contribution) was one of general laughter. Its a bit of a far cry from the reaction to Gary Goodridge and Mark Coleman’s fights that took place earlier in 2009. Perhaps even more comically, strong rumor holds that Coleman will fight Stephan Bonnar at UFC 100. Read the rest of this entry »

A few weeks ago I lamented the loss of mystique in the current crop of fighters, noting how that exciting element has been replaced by a generic, bland, three round stand up fighter.  Well, lo and behold, Lyoto went and proved me wrong with this gem from Tatame magazine:

the undefeated fighter revealed a curious tradition in his family, a secret until then: urine therapy. Once in the day, he and his family drinks their own urine. “My father does that for a long time and bring it to us. People think it’s a joke (laughs). I never said it in the United States because I don’t know how the fans will react (laughs). I drink my urine every morning like a natural medicine”

I know some are balking at this, but let me be the first to say… Awesome.  The elusive, sometimes loved, sometimes hated karate expert is now a notorious urine drinker?  Mystique - thy name is Lyoto.

Last night marked the first PPV entry of a mixed card here on this side of the Atlantic. While the biggest events in Japanese history are almost universally events mixing kickboxing and MMA, stateside the attitudes have been different regarding the use of both sports on the same stage. While there were lots of criticisms among hardcore fans on both sides of the spectrum about the combination of the fights, really, it was up to the casual fans to decide whether or not the show was a success. And their ultimate reaction displated the uncomfortable truth so many, particularly on the MMA side, were often willing to admit. MMA here was not the primary story, nor was it ever. No one was going to buy tickets to see Nelson/Monson, no matter how well matched they were on paper. The show was an exhibition in Roy Jones’ ego, and at least inside the arena, it sure looked like it was a success.

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Last year, the glut of martial arts related TV programming prompted me to write An Ultimate Fighter or a Fight Girl in a Fight Quest Against a Human Weapon at a Fight Club Until the Last One Standing is a Contender Asia, or Something. Ouch. So, in 2009, who is left standing? Well, not too many of them.

But we finally have a new entry, as NFL linebacker Dhani Jones has tossed aside his helmet to host a Travel Channel program where he spans the globe to compete in the world’s sports. In the opening episode, Jones laces up the gloves to give Muay Thai a whirl, and it wasn’t too bad.
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If you don’t love this, I don’t know. This is exactly what I’m looking for in MMA; Nick Diaz antics, Frank Shamrock talking about honor, fighting, his family while still coming off like an incredible dick. This fight is going to rule.

AllElbows: Shamrock vs Diaz Presser in Hollywood from All Elbows on Vimeo. 

In the rush of entry level business analysis, a stunning aspect of the little DREAM.7 talk that did take place was that almost none of it pertained to the actual bouts on the card. Rather, all the focus was on the business aspects of the show, which is great, except that at some point, someone should spend a couple minutes to review the athletic aspect of, well, athletics. We here at Total-MMA can’t say we helped matters any, because I didn’t bother to watch it until its HDNet debut Saturday night at 9PM, nor did, it seems, anyone else on our staff. That is okay though, because its now been shown in a pretty darn complete form for us here on this side of the Pacific. 

-CULLUM/NISHIURA: THEY DON’T MAKE ‘EM LIKE THIS ANYMORE-

For all the complaints that the UFC isn’t doing a good enough job of encouraging entertaining ground battles, the media is doing a piss poor of giving encouragement to those fights that feature it. For the most part, no one watched Reis/Cullum last year on ShoXC, but hell if it wasn’t one of the best fights of the year on one of the best cards of the year. DREAM 7 may not have been such an entertaining show, but Cullum once again came out and put on a fantastic performance against the eccentric Nishiura. Both men put on a great performance of active, world class submission grappling, with Cullum eventually outlasting Nishiura and pulling out a very close decision win.

Cullum still looks small for the tourney, however, even in victory. What he was able to get away with against the firmly established B/C Level Nishiura is not going to get him by a Kid Yamamoto. However, there’s plenty of mediocre enough names that depending on the draw he pulls for the Quarters, Cullum is a live threat to make it to the final 4.

-EVERYONE LOVES A MISMATCH-

I’ve gotten pretty hard on the UFC’s matchmaking of late, stating that the reactions to many of the bouts they’ve promoted are a result not of their actual quality, but rather the willingness of the fans to like whatever they’re told is a “good fight”. The difference then between that matchmaking and what DREAM, PRIDE, or K-1 has done since the inception of MMA in Japan with overmatched opponents getting abused by far superior opposition is that the media is more willing to admit how pointless Ross Ebanez/Tatsuya Kawajiri is than it is to admit that maybe, just maybe, guys like Joe Stevenson are actually nothing more than sacrificial lambs themselves. 

No surprises took place on the non-tourney undercard: Aoki, Kawajiri, and Ishida all pulled Ws out against their underdog foes. The most competitive of the bouts was, by far, the Ishida/Nakamura fight, as Nakamura showed no fear whatsoever of Ishida’s striking and was able on numerous occasions to take dominant position and catch limbs of the highly ranked lightweight, though he ultimately came up short on all the cards.

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