by Kendall Shields

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Would it be fair to say that Dana White is sometimes given to hyperbole? Not that you can fault him for it: the man is a promoter; he’s likely to, you know, promote. Sometimes — like when he tries to convince you, the UFC 82 Countdown viewer (watch it online in three parts), that this weekend’s Heath Herring vs. Cheick Kongo bout is indicative of how “the heavyweight division’s never been more exciting than it is right now” — you know it’s bullshit, you’re sure he knows it’s bullshit, and you’ve got to think that he knows that you know it’s bullshit. It’s really not that hard to remember more exciting times in the UFC heavyweight division. Like, say, a year ago, when Randy Couture came out of retirement to challenge Tim Sylvia for the heavyweight championship? Or when, a few months later, Couture defended it against a young challenger who had just shockingly upset a Mirko Cro Cop we all thought was still among the most dangerous fighters in the world? Or when it looked like the UFC had a legitimate shot at making a Randy Couture/Fedor Emilianenko fight a reality? It’s not that the heavyweight division is completely dead now that Couture has walked away from it — Brock Lesnar is uncommonly promising, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s submission win over Tim Sylvia was sweet relief — but to suggest that the heavyweight division has never been more exciting is obviously nonsense. You know that, Dana White knows that, but still it gets said. And again, that’s fine: promoters promote.

But in that same Countdown show, White states unequivocally that Anderson Silva is not only the top 185lbs fighter in the world, but indeed the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighter as well. This weekend’s bout between Anderson Silva and (sort of) Pride champion Dan Henderson, then, is set to determine not just the best 185 pounder in the UFC, but the best pound-for-pound MMA fighter in the world, White tells us — he says this directly, not just by implication.

And maybe he’s right.

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 by Lee Casebolt

The Book is back, just in time for what promises to be the best title fight of 2008.

For our newer readers, The Book is Total-MMA’s scouting report on the best fighters in the world.  Later this week, the ever-demanding Jonathan Snowden will be scrutinizing Pride 183-lb champ Dan Henderson.  First, though, let’s take a look at Henderson’s opponent for this weekend, UFC and Cage Rage middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

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Total MMA Volume 2, Issue 1 - Dan Henderson (To save to your computer, right click and choose “Save link as…”)

After a brief period of inactivity, Total MMA returns with a new editorial team and a new issue to boot. Ross MacTavish no longer has time to put the newsletter together although will still be involved as a writer. In his place we welcome Jonathan Snowden who has stepped up from writer to co-editor and done a sterling job on his first issue in charge.

This issue includes…

- An extensive multi-page interview with Dan Henderson
- A look back to the Strikeforece: Shamrock vs. Baroni event
- A look back to UFC 73: Stacked
- Thoughts on Kimbo Slice’s foray into MMA
- Top twenty fighter rankings for every weight class

Whilst this issue looks back at the last month or two in MMA, the plan is for future issues to be released fortnightly and contains all the content, news and analysis from the previous fourteen days, as you’ve come to expect from Total MMA.

Feedback on this new issue is hughly encouraged and we’d love to hear what you think!