Report: Hazelett vs. Saunders Nearly Set for UFC 96

Skilled grappler Dustin Hazelett, winner of five out of his first six fights, will reportedly meet fellow rising welterweight contender Ben Saunders at UFC 96 in Columbus, Ohio on March 7.

According to Sherdog.com, both fighters have agreed to the fight and bout agreements have been distributed, with both fighters expected to sign the paperwork in the coming days.

Despite remaining a relatively unknown fighter except to hardcore fans, Hazelett has been impresssive since joining the ranks of the UFC in October 2006, winning all but two of his fights and beating the likes of Josh Burkman, Jonathan Goulet, and highly-touted prospect Tamdan McCrory.

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Report: Loiseau to Return to UFC Against Herman in April

Former middleweight title challenger David Loiseau will reportedly return to the UFC after two years away from the promotion when he takes on “Ultimate Fighter” veteran Ed Herman at UFC 97 on April 18.

The news comes from a report by Cageplay.com.

Loiseau was rumored to be returning to the UFC, where he has fought seven times in his career, following his TKO win over fellow UFC veteran Solomon Hutcherson at XMMA 5 in September.

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Silva Admits Interest in Move to Middleweight

After months of speculation regarding a potential move to middleweight for former longtime PRIDE standout Wanderlei Silva, the Brazilian has finally revealed that he intends to drop down to 185 lbs after a possible rematch with Chuck Liddell later this year:

“It’s my normal weight,” Silva says of the light heavyweight class. “I never cut down too much weight for a fight. Maybe I go to fight one more time at light heavyweight, and after I go down.”

While a move down to middleweight might not work out for Silva after all, it does seem pretty practical at this point. The UFC’s 185 lb. weight class features far fewer fighters with knockout power and a shorter route to a title shot compared to the light heavyweight division. While Silva’s popularity and exciting style won’t likely see him being released from the UFC anytime soon, continued losses, especially by knockout, aren’t going help his cause.

Report: Riddle vs. Bruno Likely at UFC Fight Night 17 in February

Matt Riddle, a cast member of the seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter” reality show, is expected to take on former Spirit MC middleweight champion Steve Bruno in a welterweight preliminary matchup at UFC Fight Night 17 on February 7.

News of the fight comes from Five Ounces of Pain, citing sources close to Riddle.

Riddle, who currently trains at Arizona Combat Sports along with WEC champions Jamie Varner and Carlos Condit, was victorious in his UFC and professional debut at The Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale in June, winning an unanimous decision over house rival Dante Rivera.

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Video: Extended Preview of UFC 93 Clash Between Franklin and Henderson

Here’s a ten-minute preview of the upcoming light heavyweight dream clash between former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin and former PRIDE middleweight and welterweight title holder Dan Henderson, a fight that I’m looking forward to very, very much.

Reports: Maynard-Miller, Day-Grove Set for UFC 96 in Columbus

Two more bouts are reportedly set for the UFC’s return to Columbus, Ohio for UFC 96 on March 7.

Kevin “The Garv” Garvey, aka the fucking man, is reporting via his official website that Jim Miller will be taking on Gray Maynard at the event while Kendall Grove, who hasn’t fought since defeating the late Evan Tanner back in June, is expected to take on Jason Day according to our friends at Sportsnet.ca.

Recaps of what each fighter has been up to are inside the links.

Link of the Day: BJJ Saves Too

Pretty cool story out of California - A nine-year-old boy saved his friend from a pitbull attack by subduing the dog via rear naked choke:

Drew Heredia says he and a friend were walking her small dog Tuesday when, out of nowhere, a pit bull jumped on the dog. The 12-year-old girl tried to save her little dog, and the pit bull turned on her.

Heredia says he jumped on the dog and applied a choke hold that he learned by taking classes at a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu studio in southwest Bakersfield. He held the dog for 20 minutes until an animal control officer arrived.

The video inside the article says that Heredia had only been taking classes at a local gym for two months, not that it’s not enough time to learn how to apply the choke properly. Still, it’s pretty amazing that the dog wasn’t able to turn out of it looking at the size of the kid.

HT: Cage Writer

Report: Koscheck to Face Newcomer Thiago at UFC 95 in London

American Kickboxing Academy product and “Ultimate Fighter” alumnus Josh Koscheck will reportedly take on UFC newcomer Paulo Thiago when the organization travels in London, England for UFC 95 on February 21.

The news comes from a report by Tatame.com, citing Thiago’s coach with the Constrictor fight team, Ataíde Junior.

After dropping a disappointing decision to Thiago Alves at UFC 90 in October, Koscheck bounced back to score a devastating knockout of Yoshiyuki Yoshida at the UFC’s “Fight for the Troops” event on December 10.

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Quote of the Day: MacDonald Wants to Shake Struggles Against Top Middleweights

“So, looking to 2009, I need to try to find a way to beat these top-5 guys that I’ve come up short against. We saw that people have been let go in the past year, so my focus is to continue to get better and continue to improve my career in the UFC. I’ve got a long ladder to climb to get to the top of the division. But there are a tonne of exciting fights for me in this division.”

— UFC middleweight Jason MacDonald discusses his recent struggles against the upper-echelon of the UFC’s middleweight division and his plans to rectify the problem in his latest blog post for Sportsnet.ca.

Report: Lister Granted Release From UFC

Dean Lister has reportedly requested and been granted his release from the UFC following his lackluster decision loss to fellow middleweight Yushin Okami at UFC 92 on December 27.

According to Lister’s management team at Haymaker’s Empire via MMA Weekly, the grappling wizard is already in talks with multiple promotions interested in acquiring his services including Japan-based DREAM and Affliction Entertainment.

Despite putting up an above-average 4-2 record in the Octagon, but UFC President Dana White had been critical of him in recent months because of a string of performances that weren’t too aesthetically-pleasing for fans, especially his fights against Jordan Radev and Yuki Saski, where Lister used cautious grappling skills to coast to decision wins over both fighters.

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