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  • Best of WEC on DVD Sept. 7
    Chatsworth, Calif. – Some of the greatest fights in the history of World Extreme Cagefighting® will be available on one, action-packed DVD and Blu-Ray®. Image Entertainment, Inc. (OTCQB: DISK), one of the largest independent home entertainment distributors in North America and acknowledged pioneer of the multi-billion dollar optical disc industry, announced today that it will release the “BEST OF WEC” on Tuesday, Sept. 7.

    The latest offering from World Extreme Cagefighting® will feature six of the greatest fights in the history of the lighter weight classes, as well as never-before-seen bonus footage. “BEST OF WEC” features over three hours of tremendous action and will be available in DVD and Blu-Ray® format at Best Buy and select retailers across the United States.

    “The ‘BEST OF WEC’ release is a superb collection of WEC’s most thrilling fights and features some of the top fighters in the world,” Bill Bromiley, Chief Acquisitions Officer of Image Entertainment, said. “Image Entertainment is very excited to offer fans a front row seat to the best, most memorable fights the MMA world has ever seen.”

    Included on the “BEST OF WEC” DVD are the following fights: Miguel Angel Torres vs. Takeya Mizugaki in a bantamweight title clash from April 2009; A lightweight war between Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and “Razor” Rob McCullough from Nov. 2008; Miguel Angel Torres vs. Yoshiro Maeda for the 135-pound title from June 2008; The epic featherweight title bout between “The California Kid” Urijah Faber and Jens “Lil Evil” Pulver from June 2008; The 2009 Fight of the Year featuring Ben “Smooth” Henderson vs. Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone for the interim lightweight championship; the five-round featherweight title battle between Mike Brown and “The California Kid” Urijah Faber.

    “After the success of our first release, Aldo vs. Faber, we are excited to offer ‘BEST OF WEC’ to our loyal fans,” WEC Vice President Peter Dropick said. “Our goal is to give our following the opportunity to build a library of some of the greatest fights in WEC history. ‘BEST OF WEC’ continues that trend and is an absolute must-have for any mixed martial arts fan.”

    For more information on World Extreme Cagefighting®, visit www.wec.tv.



  • Tweets of the Week - 9/3
    UFC 118 In the Books
    “Looking like Skeletor but I feel like "Master of the Universe" -Kenny Florian

    “@Kenny_Florian it's ok bro! U r still 1 of the best. Just gotta look @ what happened n learn. U r the better fighter, just lost points. “  -Nate Marquardt

    "THANK YOU TO EVERYONE FOR THEIR SUPPORT! I HAVE THE VERY BEST FANS, FRIENDS, AND FAMILY!" - Gray Maynard

    “Soz guys,I tried but was hugged to death” -André Winner

    "Won my fight, should have opened up a little more, but he was very tough. Thanks so much for all the support, you guys are awesome!!!" -Nik Lentz

    herald soto"Thanks everybody for your support! Had to teach Nicky boy a lesson in manners. Don't be disrespectful it'll only get you beat up" -Greg Soto

    "Yep, I'm just another American wrestler LoL. USA bitches!!!" -Mike Pierce

    "IM SORRY MY FRIENDS... IT S VERY HARD TO ME BUT I LL BE BETTER ON THE NEXT TIME!!!! YOU LL WATCH OTHER GUT INSIDE THE OCTOGON.." -Amilcar Alves

    "Thanks everybody! I' m back!!" -Demian Maia

    And STILL the UFC LW Champ…
    “Leaving Boston now, the show was great and Edgar proved a lot of people wrong.” -Gerald Harris

    “Once Again thank you all for your support!! I have the best fans in MMA!” -Frankie Edgar

    “Edgar was sooo impressive” -Kyle Kingsbury

    “wow @frankieedgar performance tonight complete domination !!!” -CB Dollaway

    “Frankie Edgar is awesome!” -Aaron Simpson

    “5 rounds to Edgar. Even after being up by 4 he still kept attacking. Congrats to Frankie Edgar.” -Shane Carwin
     
    “Wow Edgar vs Penn 2 is way better than the first! Great job guys!” -Phil Davis

    “Edgar is like a 155lb Hummingbird! Great fight!” -Gerald Harris

    “Frankie just put his mark on the 155 pound divsion. Snookie is going to party her ass off tonight.”  -Miguel Torres (guest tweeting for @UFC)

    "The Belt is just an Accessory ;-) " -BJ Penn

    Team Meathead! Nice!
    “Team Meathead here. We are officially in countdown mode. Let us know who is coming to Indy to UFC119” -Matt Mitrione

    Godzilla VS J-Lau
    joe lauzon crowd 118“I gave joe a cake that said "sorry for your loss" at the weigh ins. Looked like his corner was happy.”
    “And joe was 156, I was 155. Just saying”
    “Off to bed. Talk is cheap, tomorrow means everything” -Gabe Ruediger

    “Thanks for all the support! I love all of the #boston #ufc118 fans! Tell @danawhite I should get submission of the night!” -Joe Lauzon
    Welcome to the dark side.
    “Hey everyone. Just getting into tweeting so hope to be in touch with all you over coming months. Thanks for following”  -John Hathaway

    Twitter thinks Shane is a bored housewife!
    “Why would twitter suggest I follow the Ellen Degeneris show and Jessica Alba? What does twitter think of me?” -Shane Carwin

    Don’t Call it a Comeback
    “thanks for the support guys im back on the BARONI diet and just trying to put my body back together. ill be back dont worry. big and strong” -Phil Baroni

    Mr. Bones Doomsday Rumble Wonderful
    118 fan expo davis“See what u started @ufc i dont know who i am RT @thecodyk Phil so are you Jonny Bones.or just play him on @ustream” -Phil Davis

    “@PhilMrWonderful No idea what you’re talking about, Mr. Howard.” -UFC

    FREE MARK! FREE MARK! FREE… Oh, Done.
    “Just got put in handcuffs, fit the description I guess, lol! The manager of the store ran out and told the cops they had the wrong guy. Wow!”  -Mark Hominick

    If Batman gets Gold for 18k, what does Dana get? 
    “I feel like I should have a gold metal for reaching 18,000 followers. New goals coming soon” -Kurt Pellegrino

    Send Alan Belcher good vibes… and cards!
    “This is alans wife @Ashleebelcher Yesterday his vision was blurry again today heading into another surgery on same eye please keep praying” -Alan Belcher

    “Several people have sent me @'s asking where they can send Alan a get well soon card to. gym address is 10322 gorenflo rd diberville ms 39340” -Alan Belcher

    MMA VS Boxing? 
    “MMA! MMA! MMA! :-)” -Jon Bones Jones

    “FULL MOUNT within 20 seconds!!! Aaaaaahahahahahahhahahahaah” -Kyle Kingsbury

    “Princess won haha” -Brian Bowles

    “Don't boo the guy. Props to Toney for getting in the octagon” -Shane Carwin

    “James Toney does not speak English, he speaks the truth. We just cant understand what he is saying.” -Miguel Torres (guest tweeting for @UFC)

    Fight of the Night!
    118 nick nate diaz“I loved the first fight, Diaz looks great at 170” -Shane Carwin

    “I like marcus davis but nate diaz is gangsta” -Duane Ludwig

    “Nate Diaz is tough as a raptor claw! Big shot out my namesake Marcus Davis for being a beast!” - Phil Davis

    "Thanks @jakeshieldsajj @gilbertmelendez Cesar Gracie Nick Diaz Dave Terell David Mitchell Joe soto and @ninjaroberts the whole gracie team" -Nate Diaz

    UFC Fan Expo Boston Edition
    “Great day at the UFC fan expo. Signing again tomorrow at @headrushbrand 11-1 with @Brad_Tavares and @KrisMccray “  -Kyle Noke

    “I want to thanks all of you that came to my booth today you guys are awesome I want to see every body there tomorrow love you guys God bless” -Vitor Belfort

    “Just got done being at the UFC expo for 9hrs. Will be back tomorrow at 10am for round two. Thanks for all the fans coming out! Punishment!” -Tito Ortiz

    “1st day of BostonExpo was crazy hectic, all the fans were g8, going to train a bit with @effyescudero n Ryan Bader then rest up 4 2morrow...” -Benson Henderson



  • UFC Seeking College Reps
    UFC magazine is looking for outgoing, motivated college students who are tapped into life on campus – online and off -- to help spread the word about UFC.

    randy couture cover ufc mag color correctedTalk about a cool gig - working as a college rep gives you access to the inside world of UFC, plus it can't hurt your resume to have experience with one of the fastest-growing brands in the world.

    As a part of the UFC College Rep Program, you'll help introduce your peers to the UFC magazine, promote the UFC name, features, products, lifestyle and -- of course -- encourage readers and viewers. As a UFC College Rep, you are expected to be a true brand ambassador. By building your own network of fans on campus, you’ll become the “campus gateway” to the UFC. You will be the first to know of upcoming UFC features, while also occasionally receiving merchandise and invitations to exclusive events. Utilizing word of mouth marketing and social media tools, you’ll share the wealth with your peers.

    ufc mag new issue rampageYou will also have the opportunity to:
    • Promote and execute UFC events, from magazine launches to TUF tryouts to viewing parties.
    • Be our "eyes and ears of the Octagon" on your campus, reporting on trends, attitudes, what's in vs. what's out.
    • Volunteer at UFC events. You might even be able to host your own on-campus viewing party!
    •  Work with us to create a marketing plan for UFC on your campus.
    • Receive monthly mailings, casting call information, newsletters and reports from inside the Octagon.

    Ready to apply? Shoot us an email at campus@ufc.com. Tell us in 250 words or less why you'd be the best rep for your campus. Remember to include your name, school, age, year of graduation, and links to facebook or twitter accounts with your response.



  • Rich Attonito - The Bull Rages On
    We’ve heard the tale time and again.  A fresh face joins the UFC ranks touting serious wrestling credentials – All-American! D1 champion! Team captain! – and buzz immediately ensues.  Be it Cain and Kos, or Jon Fitch and Jon Jones, one’s performance on the mats almost always clues us into his potential in the cage.

    Rich Attonito is the anomaly.

    Despite being a former Division I wrestler at Hofstra University, the 33-year-old New Jersey native is something of a late bloomer in the world of competitive sports.

    “I have to admit that during my athletic career in high school and college, I never had a chance to achieve the goals I’d set for myself,” he says.  “I would always be one win short of a tournament, or one more match away from state quarterfinals.  There was always a sense of never quite making it.”

    It’s not as if Attonito takes pride in these non-accomplishments, but he also doesn’t shy away from them.  He’s a silver lining type of guy.  Disappointments in his youth – and learning to cope with them – have only served him well as an adult.  He says they were especially helpful in maintaining mental clarity during his time on The Ultimate Fighter.

    “I was the oldest one in the house, and while I’m not by any means the most mature person, I think my age was one of the reasons I was able to stay focused rather than get caught up in how much some stuff sucked,” he says.  “Having a little more life experience in general allowed me to keep my wits about me in a situation where there are so many unknown factors.”

    The worst unknown factor was a broken hand that halted his run to the quarterfinals.  Even in victory (opponent Kyacey Uscola was DQed for illegal knees), the Team Liddell member had once again come up short and was sidelined for the remainder of the show.  It was a twist that could have tested anyone’s sanity.

    “At one point during college I was injured and needed elbow surgery,” he recalls.  “It put an end to wrestling during my senior year and my entire athletic career was basically over.  It felt like the end of the world.  But because I survived it, this time I was able to say to myself, ‘Okay, this is just a bump in the road.  You’ve been down it before.  Now you have to just pull over to the side and get it fixed.’  A younger or less experienced version of me might have harder time managing those emotions.”

    Staying positive paid off.   After the show wrapped and the hand healed, Attonito was given a chance to face the much-maligned Jamie Yager at June’s Ultimate Finale.  His official UFC debut may not have ended with the coveted prize (that honor that went to Court McGee), but a second-round TKO was reward enough.

    “I was a little surprised at how difficult it was to get his timing and take him down,” he says.  “I thought I’d put him on the ground, grind him out, and either TKO him there or submit him, but I ended up using my boxing.  I think it goes to show why I’m not the type to have any predetermined expectations for a fight – except for winning.”

    With the victory, Attonito will never again have to long for the missed opportunities of his past.  

    “Being depressed or bothered by that feeling of always being one step away… this changes all of that.  Ever since I started training, my long-term ultimate goal was to fight five times in smaller shows – you know, give myself a chance to compete – and then win a single fight in the UFC.  Now I’ve experienced the feeling of accomplishing something.  It’s incredible to reach a point where I get to re-evaluate everything and come up with a whole new set of short and long-term goals.”

    With those new objectives in mind, Attonito, 8-3 (1-0 in the UFC), will push toward the next yard line on September 15 when he faces Rafael Natal at UFC Fight Night in Austin, Texas.

    Natal, who’ll be making his Octagon debut, will bring a 12-2 record that his opponent has studied well.

    “This is going to be a classic wrestler versus BJJ practitioner matchup,” says Attonito.  “And yet it can still go anywhere.  Sometimes you get two guys who can cancel each other out in grappling, and that leaves no choice but to see who’s better at the other things.  Natal’s got a lot to offer – he’s got the jiu-jitsu skills, he likes to strike, he’s got a judo base – and I’m one hundred percent confident in my boxing, so it’s going to be exciting because we can go at it in every aspect.”

    Although it’s been less than three months since his last appearance, Attonito – who trains out of Florida’s American Top Team – says fans should expect to see a marked improvement in his game.

    “I’ve brought myself up a couple of levels in terms of certain skills,” he says.  “When you take your next fight right away it’s great because everyone is here to help fine tune little details you may not have been paying attention to during the last one.  For instance, I feel like in six weeks I’ve made more improvements to my jiu-jitsu game than I have in six months.”

    With the middleweight prospect finally hitting his stride, he expects that the future will bring true justice to his nickname, the Raging Bull.  

    “I’m 33 and not 23,” says Attonito.  “Even though I’m in my prime, I don’t want to wait too long.  It’s time to roll with this – I’ve got a path to blaze.”



  • Meat Cleaver Plans Austin Upset
    When Julio Paulino went down a couple of weeks prior to UFC 116, Forrest Petz got the kind of phone call blue-collar Clevelanders aren’t normally accustomed to—how’d you like to go to Las Vegas and take on a Ninja on very short notice?

    For a cage veteran like Petz though, a former forklift operator who’s been around the block a few times and still works in purchasing part-time for a Northern Ohio industrial supplies seller, the answer was automatic: Sure, that’d be fun.

    “My manager Monte Cox called me and asked, ‘how’s your weight? Are you in good enough shape to fight?’” Petz says, recalling how news of his fight with Daniel Roberts came to pass. “I had fought three weeks before that call against Ralph Johnson, so I was in relatively good shape. I just had to really do a crash course for a week or so to get my heart rate back up, but I was in good shape for the fight—better than my opponent, I think, and he had a full training camp.”

    Good enough to go the distance against Roberts, who eked out a split decision victory over Petz in his first bout in the Octagon since UFC 77 in 2007. But for the “Meat Cleaver”—a name given to him by a roommate back in the day for no reason other than it sounded a little ominous—there were plenty of positives to come out of it. For starters, the fight was entertaining, which is always a point of emphasis for Petz.

    “I’d seen like two of his fights on YouTube before, and I knew he was a good wrestler who didn’t like to strike a whole lot,” he says. “That and he was a southpaw, but that’s about it. You know, I wish it would have worked out better for me, but I don’t think I gave a bad showing. But that’s the past, and you can’t go back and fix it.”

    Petz is no-nonsense enough to leave his triumphs in the past as well, such as the four straight victories he strung together before Roberts in other shows. Or his decision victory over Dan Hardy back in 2006, which he shrugs off by saying “we’ve both come a long way since then, and I’m not living in the past.” Or his last victory in the UFC some three (very long) years ago against Luigi Fioravanti at UFC Fight Night 10 in 2007.

    Nice little resume boosters, those wins, but Petz (24-8) knows you’re as good as your last fight, and his next scrap against a game Brian Foster at UFC Fight Night 20 in Austin on September 15 is thrice circled on his calendar. Foster (15-5) is coming off a loss of his own to Chris Lytle at UFC 110 in Australia, making him a dangerous wounded animal. The best thing about a clash between desperate, hungry fighters looking to keep their foot in the door in the UFC’s welterweight division is they will fight like desperate, hungry fighters.

    And that’s exactly what Petz digs about this match-up. It has out-and-out dogfight written all over it.

    “What’s great about Foster is he’s not the kind of guy you have to chase around,” he says. “He’s right there in front of you—you don’t have to look for him. He’s got heavy hands, and you’ve got to be careful with a guy like that. Plus, he’s strong and he can wrestle.

    “But he’s the kind of guy I really like to fight because I know it’s going to be a brawl. It’s the kind of fight that’s going to look good. Maybe there’ll be an opportunity to get paid in there, too, with Fight of the Night.”

    Petz trains out of Strong Style Fight Team, one of the most accomplished gyms along the Rust Belt, with standouts like Chris Lozano, Jeff Cox and Brian Rogers among his cast of partners. With the luxury of a full training camp behind him and a free-dealing striker on the docket, there’s renewed excitement in the Meat Cleaver’s voice.

    And yet, even as a 35-year-old veteran who has fought everyone from Josh Neer to Marcus Davis, when he steps in to mix things up with Foster there’s still that familiar gut-wrenching nervousness that comes on just before the intro music hits the speakers.

    “That never goes away man,” he says. “The only thing that changes as you gain experience is your ability to deal with it. Your ability to handle it becomes better, no matter how much anxiety or pressure you might feel. You become more professional at it; you behave better. The day you don’t have those butterflies, that might be time to hang it up.”

    Now in his second stint in the UFC, the kickboxer Petz says he’s more than thankful for the chance to prove he belongs fighting at the top level, against the most elite welterweights in the game.

    “Any fight you go into you want to win that fight, it’s important to you,” he says. “[Foster]’s the type of guy that, even when he’s on top, he’s not looking to lay on you. He’s looking to really press the action. It’s definitely the kind of fight I want to be involved with.

    “But yeah, I’ve definitely got a chip on my shoulder because when this is all over I want to have something I can point to. I want to have accomplishments that are mine, and I want to have a winning record in the UFC.”