Photo credit: MMA Weekly

The ever-controversial Phil Baroni secured both his first win fighting in a new country and a new weight class in the main event of Cage Rage 27 with his first round stoppage of Londoner Scott Jansen.

However there was as much drama after the devastating knockout as before it when a corner-man, believed to be the brother of the fallen opponent, delivered a headbutt to the former UFC star which resulted in an unsavoury scene that will do nothing to improve the British image of mixed martial arts.

Read the rest of this entry »

On today’s edition of Total MMA Radio, our own Iain Liddle sits down with Cage Rage’s Neil Grove and Marc Staehling discusses DREAM 5.

Remember to subscribe to  via iTunes or possibly more underground and edgy podcast receivers.  Just search for ‘Total MMA’ of if want to flex your technological muslces then:

1. If you do choo, click Advanced followed by Subscribe to Podcast.
2. Type in http://feeds.feedburner.com/TotalMMARadio
3. Robert’s your mother’s brother

 

 Standard Podcast [29:07m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Photo credit: Jim Page @ Sherdog

The heavyweight semi-main event at Cage Rage 27 now carries greater significance with the announcement that the winner could then be in line to face Elite XC superstar Kimbo Slice.

Neil Grove - who will take on Robert ‘Buzz’ Berry at Wembley Arena - revealed exclusively to Total-MMA.com that while promoter Gary Shaw has discussed the potential mega-fight with him, he is not holding his breath about being flown to the US any time soon even if victorious on Saturday night.

“I think it’ll be a good fight and whoever wins, best of luck to them because i think they’ve got a either a British title shot or Kimbo Slice,” said Grove.

“This is what we’ve been promised all long by Gary Shaw.  I’d been told by some of the boys that if I beat Buzz in December then they’ll send me to America.  I know it wasn’t a pretty fight but I’m still here (in England).  I’m not too impressed with their promises.

“I don’t really rate him (Slice) at all to be honest with you.  James Thompson almost beat him and i think to me it would be more important to fight for the British title.” Read the rest of this entry »

Covering the weekend in British MMA with Lee Whitehead from MMA Weekly and UFC 86 with a brief word from Forrest and Rampage.

Remember to subscribe to  via iTunes or possibly more underground and edgy podcast receivers.  Just search for ‘Total MMA’ of if want to flex your technological muslces then:

1. If you do choo, click Advanced followed by Subscribe to Podcast.
2. Type in http://feeds.feedburner.com/TotalMMARadio
3. Robert’s your mother’s brother

 

 Total MMA Radio 9 July 2008 [61:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The list of struggling international stars looking to regain lost glory with Britain’s Cage Rage promotion now includes the infamous “New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni. The voluble American star will be the main event attraction at Cage Rage 27 this Saturday in Wembley Arena in London.

A journey to Britain has been a mixed blessing for stars looking to get back on track. Vitor Belfort was able to rack up three big wins in Cage Rage, while Ken Shamrock and Tank Abbott had less hospitable welcomes. Baroni, a former UFC and PRIDE middleweight contender, is confident that Cage Rage will be the first step on the long road back to the top of the sport. Not only is London a change in scenery, the fight will also be a much needed change in weight class. At 185 pounds, Baroni was packed with plenty of superflous muscle mass. The 170 pound Baroni should be leaner, quicker, and hungrier.

“I train with a lot of the best one seventy pound fighters in the world. And have always thought about dropping to one seventy,” Baroni told the MMA Torch. “I just feel I match up better with welterweights. I’m not short for welterweight, I am as fast as any welterweight and feel very strong when training with one seventy pound fighters. I always thought if I could just make welterweight I’d be a champion. And with a lot of discipline and hard work I can.”
Read the rest of this entry »

While our British authors were all up late watching the excellent DREAM 3, I snuck away to have a look at 41 year-old Ian Freeman making his triumphant MMA return. Freeman’s in-cage performance was every bit the equal of his new and improved physique. Freeman outclassed Paul Cahoon in a fight he dominated in all phases.

Add Freeman to the list of competitors for best in Britain (along with Bisping, Hardy, and Daley). He looks ready for world competition. I look forward to seeing what Cage Rage has in store for us.

Cage Rage today announced the name of the first fighter to have fallen foul of their recently introduced drug testing policy.

John Phillips (6-1-0 1NC) tested positive for what was only identified as a banned substance and the result of his recent fight against Jake Bostwick (3-4-0 1NC) has been officially changed to a no contest.

Read the rest of this entry »

Rob Broughton, who defeated Neil Grove in heavyweight action. Picture c/o Full Contact Fighter.

Cage Rage made mixed martial arts history on Saturday night when they became the promotion to have a father and son both compete on the same event when Ken Shamrock, and son Ryan, both stepped into the cage at Wembley Arena.

An unfortunate addendum to that history note for the Shamrocks is that they also became the first father and son combination to lose at the same with neither man making it to the second round in their respective bouts.

Read the rest of this entry »

For Ken Shamrock’s career, Saturday’s fight in England at Cage Rage 25 is a lose-lose proposition. The best case scenario? He gets a convincing win over a fighter almost no one has heard of, Sunderland’s Robert “Buzz” Berry. The worst case? He gets smashed by a bigger and younger opponent and sees future large paydays against Kimbo Slice, Don Frye, and his adopted brother Frank go up in smoke.

Ken Shamrock is 44 years old. He’s an established brand name, arguably the biggest star in the history of MMA. At this stage of his career he doesn’t need tuneup fights. The engine is too worn out to risk it and the broader question is this: what is he tuning up for? Tito Ortiz, himself only a marginal contender thanks to years of wear and tear, made it abundantly clear with three decisive wins that Ken is no longer able to compete with the top talent in the sport. No one is going to be fooled into thinking that Ken would be a good opponent for Quinton Jackson because he beats a couple of Robert Berrys. So the benefit in fighting and beating Berry is simply the short-term financial gain of whatever Pro Elite is paying him for his time. The potential losses are much more significant.
Read the rest of this entry »

With company making a habit of delivering a major announcement in advance of every event, tt is almost traditional now that the fights themselves feel like the least newsworthy item when previewing a Cage Rage show.

In recent times we have seen the implementation of drug testing, witnessed a change in ownership with Gary Shaw’s Pro Elite becoming prominent shareholders and watched as Sky television began broadcasting the events live on their sports channels.

Cage Rage 25 takes place this Saturday evening at London’s Wembley Arena and true to form there is another new issue to get people talking.

Read the rest of this entry »