UFC division rankings post UFC 118

With the top four lightweight fighters in its promotion active for UFC 118, the Ultimate Fighting Championship sorted its 155 pound weight class with a min tournament of sorts. Reigning lightweight champion Frankie Edgar (13-1) left little doubt in the eyes of critics with his second consecutive victory over former champ B.J Penn (15-7-1). A combination of quick striking, effective takedowns and ground control helped Edgar earn a clean 50-45 sweep on all three judge's scorecards.

The battle for the UFC's lightweight number one contender spot went to Gray Maynard (10-0) following a three round grinding of Kenny Florian (13-5).After a dominate wrestling performance from Maynard, he will get the next crack at Edgar's belt. The fight will be a rematch of April 2008 bout won by Maynard.

Rick Hawn & Saul Almeida featured on first legalized MMA event in Rhode Island

On October 28th 2009 Rhode Island joined Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Arizona as one of the latest states to sanction mixed martial arts officially through its athletic commission. Longtime New England boxing promoter Classic Entertainment and Sports (CES) will be the first organization to hold a sanctioned MMA event in Rhode Island with a show entitled First Blood on Friday September 17th.

The main event will feature former WEC fighter and Providence lightweight Mike Campbell (8-2) taking on Brazil's Magno Almeida (6-0). Two of the region's better prospects will also be in action as former Olympic Judoka Rick Hawn (8-0) and featherweightweight Saul Almeida (7-0) take to the cage in separate bouts.

X-1 Heroes features Falaniko Vitale vs. Kala Hose & semifinals of 205 lb tourney

X-1 Heroes returns to the Neal S. Blaisdell Arena with a card featuring some of the top local talent on the island of Hawaii. In the main event two Hawaiian mixed martial arts legends do battle for the first time when Falaniko Vitale (27-9) takes on Kala Hose (7-3). Vitale bounced back from a two year layoff with a first round choke out of Kalib Starnes back in March.

Hose has not been active since an April 2009 loss to Jason Miller.

The second round of X-1's light heavyweight tournament will also take place as all four fighters who won in round one will compete in the semifinals. Local Po'ai Suganuma (10-3) remains the favorite while Cesar Gracie trained Roy Boughton (4-0) is the fastest rising prospect left in the field.

Ryan Roberts vs. Anthony Leone highlights Urban Conflict Championship in NJ

According to UCC officials  journeyman Kevin Roddy (9-10-1) has replaced Anthony Leone (8-1) in the main event of UCC 3. Roddy will take on Ryan Roberts (13-9) in a 145 pound fight. Leone is now booked for a Bellator FC bout versus Georgi Karakhanyan (13-2-1) on September 9th.

Press release

On September 10, 2010, Jersey City's National Guard Armory will set stage to the next major Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) event to take place directly outside of New York City- "UCC 3: RENEGADES." This is the third event of the Tri-State area's premiere professional fight series: Urban Conflict Championship (UCC).

Headlining the fight card will be a featherweight matchup between Ryan "Are You Ready?" Roberts (13-9) who fought for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in early 2008, against Team BombSquad's Anthony Leone (8-1) who has World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) experience, and is coming off the only loss of his career.

Raging Wolf IX in NY results - Elaina Maxwell battles Alexis Davis to three round decision

Raging Wolf returned to the Seneca Niagara Casino with a ten fight card headlined by the anticipated first title defense for the promotions 135 pound champion Alexis Davis (8-4). A Canadian bantamweight Davis dropped a three round decision to California's Elaina Maxwell (4-3). Originally booked as a title fight for Davis's 135 pound Raging Wolf title, the fight was dropped to three rounds after Maxwell failed to make weight.

Davis won the Raging Wolf belt with a third submission of Tonya Evinger (8-4) back in May. Maxwell has posted back to back wins since returning the cage in July 2010. Prior to her return Maxwell had not competed since a June 2008 loss to Miesha Tate (11-2) on the undercard of a Strikeforce event.

Uber Smash in FL results - 185 prospect Josh Samman grabs ninth career “W”

Hometown Tallahassee fighter Josh Samman (9-1) continued a five bout winning streak with a first round TKO of John Walsh (0-1). The fight was the main event of Florida Uber Smash promotion's fourth event.

A 22 year old fighting out of Tallahassee Combat Sports, Samman's impressive winning percentage puts him right in the mix of aspiring middleweight MMA prospects. On the local level 185 has become one of the shallower divisions in MMA.

International spotlight- Gunnar Nelson moves to 7-0 with round one submission of Danny Mitchell

The top unsigned welterweight in mixed martial arts Gunnar Nelson (7-0-1) stepped into the main event slot at Cage Contenders 6 in England over the weekend. Matched-up with England's Danny Mitchell, the fight for Nelson was his second of 2010.

A 2009 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships fourth place finisher as well as a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Renzo Gracie, Nelson's grappling resume is unparalleled on the local MMA level. The 22 year old from Iceland has achieved five star prospect status through submission wrestling attributes that have translated successfully to the MMA cage.

NAAFS Rock N’ Rumble results- Heavyweight Stipe Miocic gets seventh first round win

One part rock concert, one part mixed martial arts card, the 4th annual NAAFS Rock N' Rumble event took place at the Nautica Pavilion in Cleveland, OH. On the undercard Ohio heavyweight Stipe Miocic (3-0, 5-0 AM) kept is "0" versus previously unbeaten big man Jeremy Holm (1-1, 8-0 AM).

Miocic last competed on the undercard of Moosin MMA in May. The 6'4 striker has only heard the second round bell in one of his eight pro/am bouts. A 28 year old local firefighter, Miocic's breakneck style continues to position himself for a big run on the local MMA scene over the next several months.

Natural selection: UFC 118 results – Couture chokes out Toney & Edgar cruises to victory

UFC 118 results
Boston, MA

Frankie Edgar def. BJ Penn by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Randy Couture def. James Toney by submission arm-triangle choke 3:19 R1
Demian Maia def. Mario Miranda by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Gray Maynard def. Kenny Florian by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Nate Diaz def. Marcus Davis by submission guillotine choke 4:02 R3
Joe Lauzon def. Gabe Ruediger by submission armbar 2:01 R1
Nik Lentz def. Andre Winner by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Dan Miller def. John Salter by submission anaconda choke 1:53 R2
Greg Soto def. Nick Osipczak by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Mike Pierce def. Amilcar Alves by submission cross-body armbar 3:11 R3

Ring of Fire 39 in CO results – Eliot Marshall & Brandon Thatch nab victories

The progression of welterweight Brandon Thatch (5-1) continued in the co-main event of Ring of Fire 39 at the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver. A five time ROF veteran Thatch was matched up with Las Vegas fighter Danny Davis (5-2-1).

Thatch's superior ground control became the plot of the one round fight. After an initial takedown Davis worked his way back to his feet. Thatch was than the one put on his back from a single leg attempt by Davis. With Thatch reversing the position Davis ate a harsh elbow from the bottom.