TNA iMPACT! Results 11/18: Matt Morgan vs. Ric Flair

Filed under: Pro Wrestling

FanHouse has complete results for the 11/18 edition of TNA Wrestling iMPACT!, headlined by a casket match between Abyss and Shannon Moore as well as a one-on-one contest between TNA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy and EV2.0's Raven. Also on the show, Jeff Jarrett gives us a mixed martial arts demonstration, Angelina Love takes on Mickie James in a number one contenders match, and Ric Flair facing "The Blueprint" Matt Morgan.

Complete iMPACT! Results are below.

iMPACT! Results:

- The show opens with Ric Flair being appointed the special guest referee for the upcoming rematch between Jeff Hardy and Matt Morgan.

1. Generation Me (Max Buck and Jeremy Buck), Robbie E. and Cookie defeated The Motor City Machine Guns (Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin), Jay Lethal and Velvet Sky with a roll-up after Sabin was blinded by hairspray.

- Samoa Joe interrupts Jeff Jarrett's MMA exhibition. This ends up leading to a submission match between the two, but Jarrett throws his students into Joe's path and runs away.

2. Win or Fired: TNA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy defeated Raven with a Swanton. After the match, Hulk Hogan fires Raven.

- Tommy Dreamer confronts Rhino about his gore on Rob Van Dam last week, telling him that he sold his soul and sold out his friends. Rhino attacks Dreamer, and Van Dam makes the save. Van Dam ends up getting gored again to end the segment.

3. Casket Match: Abyss defeated Shannon Moore by disqualification (yes, by disqualification in a casket match) after interference from Pope D'Angelo Dinero.

4. #1 Contenders Match for the TNA Knockouts Title: Mickie James defeated Angelina Love with a DDT.

- Brother Ray explains his turn on Devon, calling him the weak link in the team and comparing himself to Shawn Michaels in the one and only time anybody will ever compare Bubba Ray Dudley to f###ing Shawn Michaels.

5. Matt Morgan defeated Ric Flair with a Carbon Footprint. Fortune ran to the ring to attack Morgan during the match, but Douglas Williams turned on them and helped Morgan fight them off.

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Inside Golden State's Owners Box: Talking With Joe Lacob and Peter Guber

Filed under: Warriors, Fantasy Basketball, FanHouse Exclusive

SAN FRANCISCO -- There's really no getting around that dateline.

The new owners of the team from Oakland did almost all of their media relations work this week in the fancier city by the Bay, an unmistakable sign that they won't be adhering to any borders or boundaries in this endeavor that has officially begun. Venture capitalist Joe Lacob and entertainment entrepreneur Peter Guber made that clear even before their record purchase of $450 million was final, somehow managing to force coach Don Nelson out before the team was theirs and approving deals like the one for David Lee before the NBA's Board of Governor's had even approved their own inclusion into this elite club.

They have no time for such institutional obstacles, especially if they distract from what is a singular and sophisticated, yet simplistic, focus on the goal at hand: revive a franchise that is among the league's most dreadful with savvy use of their self-described "deep pockets," thereby rewarding a fan base that has been inexplicably loyal despite enjoying one playoff appearance in 15 years under former owner Chris Cohan.

Yet ironically enough, they are distracted on this Tuesday afternoon inside a $10,000-a-night St. Regis suite. No one can blame them, as two straight days of making the media rounds would leave most folks punchy.

Interview Highlights

---

Sam Amick's far-reaching conversation with new Warriors owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber touched upon many topics, including ...

o. What being an owner means to them.

o. How they plan to turn the franchise around in the future -- and what went wrong in the past.

o. The fan experience, and whether Guber's Hollywood background will be felt in Oakland.

o. The "tricky" process of removing one coach and inserting another before owning the team -- and the "slap on the wrist" that followed.

o. The urge to make an immediate splash and the importance of patience on the trade front.

o. The transformation of Monta Ellis, and whether that makes him more likely to stay.

o. Stephen Curry, and whether he is, in fact, untouchable.

Lacob, the top money man whose recent tenure as minority owner of the Boston Celtics gives him the basketball pedigree among the pair, responds to e-mails on his phone and discusses the Lee injury situation in one room, squeezing the less public parts of his new job in while one camera crew leaves and this reporter enters. Guber, the Hollywood producer with more than 50 Academy Award nominations on his storied resume and whose bio accurately describes him as "a force in the entertainment industry for more than 30 years," makes an actual phone call, showcasing that Boston accent that Lacob (a fellow Bostonian who doesn't sound like it) will later chide him for still having.

They put the phones away and meet at the table that likely cost more than an average family's monthly mortgage. They sit on opposite sides -- call it anti-symbolism -- and explain for nearly 40 minutes why their partnership is worthy of all the promise it has sparked.

They discuss what it means to be an owner, especially the outspoken and involved sort that has the NBA convinced that they -- Lacob, specifically -- will be the next coming of Mark Cuban. They opine about the entertainment experience and how Guber can use his background to enhance it. They reveal the story behind Don Nelson's ousting, one that resulted in a "slap on the wrist" of sorts from the NBA. They shed light on the inner-workings of their new club, from whether Monta Ellis is still on the trading block to whether Stephen Curry is untouchable to the status of their relationship with incumbent general manager Larry Riley.

They're official now, this self-described "Abbott and Costello" duo that wants to make the most of this underutilized market. Yet when it comes to adding another championship banner to the 1974-75 version that hangs in the rafters at Oracle Arena, they're not joking around.

(Disclaimer: My rambling questions have been edited, if only because Lacob and Guber's ramblings are of far more interest. And even some of their ramblings were pared down because, well, this pair can ramble.)

 

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Despite UFC/WEC merger, Versus still committed to MMA

With the UFC and WEC merging, Versus, the television home for the WEC, seemed to be the odd man out. However, it's stepped up its commitment to MMA, and on Thursday, will try out a pre-show and post-show hosted by MMA reporter Ariel Helwani and Molly Qerim, who was formerly on ESPN's "MMA Live."

Marc Fein, the executive vice president of programming, production and business operations for Versus, told Cagewriter that Versus is just as committed to MMA as ever.

"With our relationship with the UFC and WEC, we already started with integration on 'The Daily Line.' With this show, we stepped up with the opportunity on doing a pre-show and a post-show, just like all other major sporting events do, and do a full-on 30-minute show."

"The Daily Line," a nightly show covering all sports, was canceled because the show never really gained traction with viewers. The hope is that the pre- and post-show will entice MMA viewers with a mix of interviews, highlights and fight discussions. UFC president Dana White and heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez are scheduled to appear on Thursday's pre-show. The success of Thursday's show will determine the future of the show.

"We want to get this one under our belt, see what the ratings are, see what the fan and viewer reactions are. Obviously, we need to see when the shows are scheduled to see what we can accommodate, but we're going to step back, evaluate it, and see where," Fein said. "We want to give the UFC/WEC fans a place to come where they come in and get a great, 30-minute show, then after the fight, take a look back and break down the fights."

The network will continue its relationship with Zuffa, the company which owns both the UFC and WEC, despite the merger of the two promotions. Earlier this year, it aired two different UFC events, and next year will expand to four cards.

"Having four UFC fights is absolutely a great thing. We still have rights to run our WEC library going back to 2007 of all the great WEC fights and 'WrekCages,' and things we're doing now like a pre-show and post-show. For us, we think it's great for the brand. It's a natural evolution of expanding our relationship with them."

It always wants to keep the conversation growing, but it is focused on its last two WEC events. 

"We love the sport. We love the UFC. We love the WEC and we're always looking to expand. When the time comes, we'll cross that bridge. Right now, our focus is the two fights the rest of this year which is going to have major implications for these fighters going into the UFC, and also the four UFC fights next year, and I'm sure we'll have more conversations."

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Peter Thiel: Facebook Co-Founder Eduardo Saverin Did A Poor Job, Got Rich Anyway

As far as I know, and my Web searching skills can take me, early Facebook investor Peter Thiel hasn't yet publicly commented on the role of Eduardo Saverin, who co-founded and initially bankrolled 'thefacebook' back in the early days. Well, Thiel did exactly that, on Big Think (video below). Asked who Saverin is, Thiel says he was "affiliated, quasi-employed at Facebook in 2004". The fun doesn't stop there. Update: We spoke�to Peter Thiel today who felt his comments on Saverin were taken out of context and exaggerated by Big Think. He clarified, "I don't have a strong opinion on his work performance, but I do think that he did very well during his very short time at Facebook. I didn't mean it to be a hit on him."

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White calls Marquardt a 'choker' and criticizes camp

Dana White speaks his mind even if it means lashing out at the good guys in the sport. White pulled no punches after watching Nate Marquardt struggle in another pivotal fight.

"He is a choker," White told MMAjunkie at the UFC postfight press conference. "He choked tonight. Listen you couldn't meet a nicer guy than Nate Marquardt. He's a great guy. Nice kid choked tonight."

Marquardt lost his one and only shot at the middleweight title back in 2007. He's admitted many times that he froze up against the champion Anderson Silva at UFC 73.

Back in February, a win over Chael Sonnen would've earned him a much-coveted rematch against the champ. Because of a flawed gameplan, he was dominated by Sonnen. It happened again last night against Yushin Okami. Marquardt never got in a groove. He was outpointed on the feet and couldn't maintain position when the match hit the ground.

What disappointed White even more was Marquardt's measured approach. The fight appeared to be even on the scorecards heading to the final round, but the middleweight contender never went for broke.

"You already blew a title shot once; you're in a fight for the title shot again in the third round, and you're not throwing any punches or kicks? It has nothing to do with pressure," White said. "You're ... professional, and you're going to go after it in the last round to get your title shot."

The UFC president pointed the finger of blame at Marquardt's trainer and cornermen.

"I mean, Nate Marquardt sat here tonight and said that he thought he won the fight. Where the [expletive] is his corner? You go into the last round and you're getting outstruck by a wrestler, and you think you won the fight? And this is consistent with the Greg Jackson camp," said White.

The Jackson camp generally employs a calm, analytical style between rounds. There's no screaming, yelling or desperation. White said that approach has backfired with many of the Jackson fighters.

"Marquardt is such a talented guy, and what I'm seeing is stuff from the Greg Jackson camp," White said. "This camp continuously – when these guys fight, their corner is either telling them they're ahead or they're winning."

The disappointment of the loss can probably be erased pretty quickly with a couple of wins. Marquardt is just 31 years old and Silva is far from a lock to hold onto the title in 2011. Marquardt is also fortunate because there aren't a ton of hot shot prospects nipping at his heels that could knock him from the top five in the UFC's 185 class.

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Bears Turn Back Clock, Blank Dolphins

Filed under: Chicago Bears, Dolphins, AFC East, NFC North, NFL Analysis

MIAMI -- The 1985 game between these two teams was a classic.

This one wasn't.

But hardcore, throwback Chicago fans still peeved about that historic whipping the Miami Dolphins handed the then-unbeaten (and seemingly unbeatable) and Super Bowl shufflin' Bears may have taken a little extra satisfaction from Thursday night's 16-0 victory at Sun Life Stadium. Good for them.

As for the here and now, the Bears (7-3) moved a half-game ahead of Green Bay atop the NFC North standings and, no less significant, pulled even with the Atlanta Falcons for most wins in the conference.

In this 2010 season of no great teams, who's to say Chicago can't be there at the end?

"That's what we're saying," Bears center Olin Kreutz nodded.

---

Bears 16, Dolphins 0: Quick Hits | Recap | Marshall Injures Hamstring

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David Stewart Fined $20,000 by NFL, Adding to Titans' Massive Team Total

Filed under: Titans, AFC South

The Tennessee Titans' fine total continues to grow.

David Stewart, the Titans' right tackle, has been fined $20,000 for unnecessary roughness penalty in a 29-17 loss to Miami this past Sunday, Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean reported Friday. Wyatt reported that the NFL ruled that Stewart "unnecessarily hit a Dolphin away from the pile."

Titans players have now been fined at least $119,500 this season, Wyatt reported.

 

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John Forte To Chart His Spectacular Rise And Fall In Memoir

Onetime Fugees producer/MC tells MixtapeDaily book will 'revisit what it was like to be on top of the world and [then] buried beneath the world.'
By Jayson Rodriguez

John Forte
Photo: MTV News

Cornerstone Credentials: John Forte

No disrespect to Jay-Z or Trick Daddy, but if there's a rapper who really needs to put pen to pad to write a book about his life, it's John Forte.

In the years leading up to his music industry success, the former Fugees affiliate lived a charmed life, overcoming an impoverished childhood and going on to enjoy the privilege and opportunities that came with an elite private school education. That all came to a crashing halt, however, when in 2000 he was arrested at an airport after authorities discovered he was carrying $1.4 million worth of cocaine in a briefcase.

He began serving a 14-year sentence in 2001, but the term was commuted when outgoing President George W. Bush pardoned him in 2008. Now Forte plans to open up about the dark period in his life.

"It's a pretty uncomfortable thing for me to do," Forte recently told Mixtape Daily about his forthcoming book, to be published by Simon & Schuster. "In order for me to tell this story the right way and to do it justice, I have to relive this moment. Yes, it's cathartic, but also to have this discipline to sit still and to revisit what it was like to be on top of the world and be buried beneath the world."

Since being released from prison, Forte has mostly set music aside. While he's still working on material, he decided he had to learn how to exist as a free man before returning to the scene that once made him, as he put it, a "vampire."

"I think there was an expectation for me to come home and for me to cash in on the credibility factor," Forte explained. "I was real. I was thorough. I did this. That wasn't impressive to me. I went on a journey. I felt like I went all around the world, even though I was sitting still. I got to a pretty comfortable place in my headspace and my spirituality — that was still removed from society. So I had to come home and make sure I was still in tune with what was happening here."

For other artists featured in Mixtape Daily, check out Mixtape Daily Headlines.

Related Artists

• John Forte

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NCAA Ultimate Hypocrite in Forstmann, IMG Gambling Case

by Greg Couch

Filed under: March Madness, Coaches, Gambling, Rumors, FanHouse Exclusive, NCAA Tournament, Sports Business and Media

Not long ago, the NCAA was strong-arming newspapers, and I use that word only because blackmail might be a legal term. The NCAA would go to newspaper offices demanding that the sports sections stop running betting lines. If not, their reporters might not get press passes to important games.

That's how big of a scourge, how big a threat to the credibility of its games, the NCAA saw gambling to be.

Now, Ted Forstmann, CEO of IMG, is alleged in a lawsuit to have bet more than $170,000 on the 2007 NCAA men's basketball tournament alone. At the time, the IMG Coaches unit was serving as the agent for top college basketball coaches. Not only that, but also IMG was one month from announcing that it had purchased the company that would become known as IMG College, the biggest power player in licensing and marketing college sports.

Put it this way: Forstmann was allegedly gambling heavily on college sports at the same time he was negotiating to increase his role in the college sports world and become a major player.

Imagine what the NCAA higher-ups have to say about that. I asked them.

"The NCAA opposes all forms of legal and illegal sports wagering on college sports,'' Stacey Osburn, an NCAA PR person wrote in an e-mail. "Sports wagering has become a serious problem that threatens the well-being of student-athletes and integrity of college sports.''

 

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Bowl Projections: Still Waiting on Enough Teams to Earn Eligibility

Filed under: BCS, Bowl Games, BCS Championship Game

Entering this weekend, 54 of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision teams have reached bowl eligibility. That sure sounds like a lot, right? Well, the only problem is there are 35 bowls that need 70 bowl-eligible teams.

The good news: there are still ample opportunities for 16 more teams to get that elusive sixth victory and qualify for a bowl game (uh, except for you, USC).

The bad news: there still may not be enough teams that get to six victories. If that happens, bowls will be rewarding teams with 5-7 records.

Imagine the men in the bowl blazers trying to decide which 5-7 team to select. "Well, they only lost by 28 points in their last game."

Now, imagine the difficulty in trying to project what teams will go to all these bowls. Well, anyway, I decided to have a go at it. So here are FanHouse's bowl projections and -- don't worry -- we'll update/change/shuffle them each week until the official announcements are made Dec. 5.

 

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Michael Redd Targeting February Return

Filed under: Bucks, NBA Injuries, Interviews, FanHouse Exclusive

MILWAUKEE -- Michael Redd finally was back in Milwaukee on Thursday.

No, not in a Bucks uniform. But at least he was in the city and at least he finally can see a possible return date following two major knee injuries in the past two years.

"The goal for me is February,'' the one-time star guard said in an interview with FanHouse about when he hopes to return after not playing since Jan. 10, 2010.

Redd, who has been rehabbing in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, was in Milwaukee for the first time since last March. He chatted with teammates at a Bucks practice and had the Thanksgiving event he has held for eight years for disadvantaged families. That was the primary reason for Milwaukee visit.

The next time Redd returns, he wants to be taking part in a Bucks practice. He said he was cleared Nov. 8 to do some basketball activities.

"I feel great,'' said Redd, who believes he can be 100 percent when he comes back. "I'm just now getting acclimated to playing basketball again. ... I'm doing some basketball stuff on the court now, shooting and dribbling, a little light running. Just getting acclimated to playing basketball again.''

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Happy Veterans Day from Cagewriter

A big thank you to all those who have served and protected the United States, particularly fighters, friends and fans of MMA. Strikeforce's Tim Kennedy served in the Army, and the WEC's Mackens Semerzier, who will fight Cub Swanson tonight, was a Marine. They are just two of several fighters who became involved with MMA because of their time serving the U.S. in the military.

If you want a great way to give back to veterans today, take a look at Hire Heroes, a not-for-profit run by UFC light heavyweight and former Marine Brian Stann or the Wounded Warriors Project. Hire Heroes gives job training and career support to returning veterans, while Wounded Warriors helps veterans who were wounded transition back to civilian life. 

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Miami Heat Teammates Never Lost Faith in Chris Bosh

Filed under: Heat, Suns

MIAMI -- Despite a fairly consistent preseason with his new team, Chris Bosh struggled with his role on the Miami Heat in the first 10 games of the regular season. In fact, once Dwyane Wade returned to the lineup after missing the entire preseason, it was obvious that Bosh's role as the third option was going to take some time getting used to. That didn't stop an avalanche of criticism questioning his toughness and mentality now that the spotlight (or a bullseye) was on him.

Bosh's dominating performance against the Phoenix Suns may have only lasted for three quarters, and six rebounds still aren't enough for a player of his caliber, but it was nonetheless an important game to regain confidence in his game. Scoring 35 points in just 30 minutes while also chipping in four assists will do that.

"I think he was due, well overdue, for one of these games," a proud LeBron James said after the blowout victory. "I could see it in his eyes to start the game. I think he was a little disappointed in himself with the performance that he played against Toronto, but we weren't. I think he put a lot of pressure on himself."

 

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C.J. Spiller Apologizes for Offensive Tweet

Filed under: Bills

C.J. Spiller apologized for a derogatory word he used on his Twitter account.

After practice Wednesday, Spiller used a gay epithet while speaking via Twitter with friend and former college teammate Ricky Sapp. The tweet, since deleted, read "Keep my name out ur mouth f**."

Shortly after, he posted an apology tweet, saying "I wanna apologize for using dat derogatory term to any1 that I may have offended I am truly sorry that was out of my character. God bless."

On Thursday, Spiller again admitted remorse.

"I apologize for it," he said. "Me and Ricky, you know, we're best friends. We always joke around on there and I shouldn't have said what I said. I apologize for it. I'll kind of leave it at that.

"You definitely got to be careful of what you put," he continued. "If anybody knew how me and Ricky play around on Twitter, pretty much know that we were just joking and didn't mean any harm. People did, and it is what it is. Like I said, I apologize for the situation and just move forward, you know, get ready for the ballgame."

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WEC 52 and UFC 122's Three Stars: Faber, Benavidez and Siver

Last week featured a ton of free (for the price of cable) MMA, and while WEC 52 was reliably fantastic, UFC 122 was not the best collection of fights. Still, both cards featured fighters who were a step above.

No. 1 star -- Urijah Faber: It turns out the new Faber is the same as the old Faber. In his debut at bantamweight, the former featherweight champ submitted Takeya Mizugaki, a fighter who had only lost by a stoppage once before in his career. 

No. 2 star -- Joseph Benavidez: Faber's teammate and training partner had his own big win. He had to try three times, but finally, Benavidez was able to submit one of MMA's best jiu-jitsu players, Wagnney Fabiano, with a guillotine.

No. 3 star -- Dennis Siver: Fighting in front of his home crowd at UFC 122 in Germany, Siver delivered. He dominated "The Ultimate Fighter" star Andre Winner, and ended the bout with a beautiful rear-naked choke. He earned a $60,000 Submission of the Night bonus for his work.

Honorable mention -- Demetrious Johnson: "Mighty Mouse" executed a perfect game plan for beating Damacio Page, a fighter who won his last two fights by highlight-reel KOs. Johnson moved well, cut angles and used takedowns to avoid Page's lethal punches, then won with a guillotine. Thought he would be perfect for a flyweight division, Johnson has staked a claim on bantamweights, as well.

Who are your stars from the extended MMA weekend?

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The new 'Prodigy' McDonald gets a chance to fight his way into the UFC

It's move on or move out time for many of the WEC fighters on the promotion's last two cards. The pressure begins Thursday night at WEC 52 in Las Vegas where some of the fighters are guaranteed spots in the UFC, but the rest of the guys are far from locks. Imagine that kind of pressure when you're only 19 years old? That's what bantamweight Michael McDonald is facing. 

Is he mature enough to handle this? Listening to McDonald talk about his short time on Earth, he sounds like a grizzled veteran. From The Canadian Press:

"I feel like I went straight from a kid to an adult," [McDonald] explained. "At 14 years old I started teaching in classes, at 16 years old I had grown men saying I was their hero. And that's not something a normal kid has to deal with. It seems like it's a great big honour but when you're not ready for that kind of stuff, there's side effects of course."

McDonald is 10-1. His only loss came against a pretty accomplished veteran in Cole Escovedo (16-6). The 19-year-old said he'd lost his focus before the fight.

"And when I was growing up in high school, I never got to go to a high school football game. I've only went to one dance which was my prom. I did miss out on a lot of teenage things and I struggled with it for a long time. And it kind of started adding up. In my immaturity I forgot why I was doing it (fighting)." [...]

"Fighting just wasn't what I wanted to do any more. I felt like it was just a burden, that it had cut me off from so many things in my life. . . . That's when I took the Cole Escovedo fight and I just got mopped."

The painful loss got him thinking.

"After that I had to take a little bit of a break and get my head back about myself, and ask myself why am I doing this? Why am I fighting? And it's because I love to do it. As much as I wanted to be liked every normal kid, I knew every normal kid on the planet wanted to be me. I just had to suck it up and say 'You know what, this is the life I chose. It's time for me to stop moping around myself . . . God blessed me with these gifts and I need to use them, not say how much I wish he would have given me other things to be a normal person. He made me special, you know. I've got to go out and I've got to do what I need to do. I've got to stop being a kid, I've got to grow up.'

"And as soon as I did that, I got back on track and started on my winning ways again."

McDonald pulled things together and crushed Escovedo in the rematch.

McDonald is far from a finished product, but he's clearly ahead of the curve as a fighter. He'll get a chance to prove if he's truly a prodigy Thursday against 28-year-old Clint Godfrey on the undercard of WEC 52. 

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UFC 122: Yushin Okami Beats Nate Marquardt by Unanimous Decision

by Michael David Smith
In a hard-fought, hard-to-judge main event at UFC 122, Yushin Okami defeated Nate Marquardt by unanimous decision.

"Nate is a great fighter, but I thought I deserved it," Okami said afterward, through his translator. "I'm ready for the championship."

UFC President Dana White has said Okami will get that shot, after champion Anderson Silva takes on Vitor Belfort in February. Okami was the last man to beat Silva, winning by disqualification in 2006 when Silva illegally kicked him in the head on the ground, and both of them have said in the past that they want to settle the score. If Silva beats Belfort they'll finally do it.

 

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The Works: Michael Beasley Is Back; What Is What It Takes?

Filed under: Heat, Lakers, Timberwolves, Trail Blazers, The Works

In The Works today: why research matters and those tragic Blazers. But first, why you should watch Michael Beasley.

Open Your Eyes

After Kevin Love had his Game of Games (the 30/30 one), I asked the Twitter-verse why it was that rebounding on a bad team was so much more admirable, and impressive, than scoring in bunches for one. The response, of course, was that rebounding takes effort and ingenuity, whereas you or I could go into a game today and start chucking shots at the basket. I guess. The point is well taken, though; someone has to score the point. There's no rule that someone on lottery-bound squads has to dominate the glass.

Historically speaking, it's just a lot harder to get 30 boards than, say, 40 points. So that settles that.

There are plenty of other reasons to be skeptical of Michael Beasley's Minnesota renaissance. For one, Beasley has funny hair, might still be kind of loopy, can't rebound like Love, and by his own admission, benefited from getting to be a big fish is a small, festering pond. Not to mention that the redemption narrative is about the most hackneyed trope in all of sports. There are good and bad years. Days, too. It's not the gods at work.

All that said, Beasley's turnaround is one of the more remarkable stories of this young season. One torrential shooting performance doth not a young star make. But [insert less hood-sounding nickname here] lately has made a habit of putting up 25-30 every night, and has a decent shot at Most Improved Player, in a rare instance where that honor actually makes some sense.

 

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More frustration for Page: Johnson scores submission win at WEC 52

At the end of 2009, Damacio Page was on fire. Then came some annoying injuries and 13 months on the sidelines. Ready to get back in the mix, Page was greeted with more frustration. Demetrious Johnson’s constant movement and grappling made it difficult for Page to get anything going. He got tired and sloppy in the final round allowing Johnson to slap on a guillotine choke for the win at 2:27 of the third.

Page (12-5, 3-2 WEC) is a banger but the much smaller Johnson was impossible to catch. When he was corraled, Page scored three good takedowns in the first. But even on the ground, Johnson was in constant motion while defending.

The fight changed in the second when Johnson scored multiple takedowns and then he put things in motion for the win with some vicious strikes at the start of the third.

Just seconds into the final round, Page was off balance after a clinch gone bad. Stumbling away, he got caught by three punches and a left kick to the face. Johnson jumped on top and went to work. Page just didn’t have enough energy to get back to his feet. When he tried, he got sloppy and basically gave Johnson the choke opportunity.

This is a huge win for the 5-foot-5 Johnson (8-1, 2-1 WEC) who is tiny for the weight class. He’s only 24. Once the UFC adds the 125-pound class, Johnson has a chance to be a player. He delivered tonight as a huge underdog at plus-250.

WEC 52 undercard:

Yves Jabouin def. Brandon Visher via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
Cub Swanson def. Mackens Semerzier via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).
Michael McDonald def. Clint Godfrey via submission (armbar) - Round 1, 2:42.
Dustin Poirier def. Zack Micklewright via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 0:53.
Anthony Njokuani def. Edward Faaloloto via TKO (strikes) - Round 2, 4:54.
Raphael Assuncao def. L.C. Davis via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

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Out & About

? Akon was shuttled in style by Maserati to New York hotspot Greenhouse's second anniversary party, which benefited The Earth Organization.

? Singer Shontelle performed at the Belvedere Intense Unfiltered launch in New York.

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