MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Houston Alexander faltered when it mattered most, and now the UFC veteran will soon receive his walking papers from the organization.
UFC president Dana White today told a small group of reporters at the UFC 107 pre-event press conference that Alexander, who recently dropped a lackluster unanimous decision to Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson, has been cut from the UFC.
MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has since confirmed the process hasn't been completed but soon will be.
Alexander, who returned from a one-fight break from the organization, suffered the loss this past weekend on Dec. 5 at The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale. Alexander circled the cage and didn't engage for nearly two minutes into the fight. Once he did, his explosive standup game – one that earned him a big fan following with vicious knockout of Keith Jardine and Alessio Sakara – never truly emerged.
Instead, Ferguson used solid clinch work and takedowns to control the fight and take the decision win. Alexander is now 2-4 in the UFC with four consecutive losses, and his overall mark stands at 9-5.
"I was going to leave," White said of Ferguson vs. Alexander. "I was going to get up and walk out of the fight. That's what I thought of it. If I didn't have to hand out 'The Ultimate Fighter' trophy at the end (of the event), I would have left that night. It wasn't a good night for me."
While complimenting Ferguson for a legit career win, White also compared Alexander to former UFC fighter Kalib Starnes, who was cut in 2008 following a bizarre loss to Nate Quarry. Starnes, who later said he was injured prior to the bout, continually backpeddled in the fight, which he lost via blowout scores of 30-26, 30-27 and 30-24.
"As disgusted as I was with Houston Alexander's performance, Kimbo beat a real guy," White said. "The last thing I expected was for Houston Alexander to come in and do the Kalib Starnes."
White said he never discussed his displeasure with the fighter.
"I don't even want to talk to him," he said. "Houston had an opportunity to – ahh, anyway."
The termination follows what had been a heavily promoted storyline for UFC officials. The UFC garnered a lot of positive mainstream press thanks to Alexander, a single father of six children who donated a kidney to one of his kids. The soft-spoken but hard-hitting hip-hop DJ and public speaker began his MMA career in underground fight clubs, where he quickly garnered a legendary reputation, before earning his way to the UFC.
Friday, December 11, 2009
UFC to cut Houston Alexander following "Kimbo Slice" loss
Monday, December 7, 2009
Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell : NAMED "The Ultimate Fighter 11" COACHES!
LAS VEGAS – His pleas for the job apparently worked; Tito Ortiz will serve as a coach on the upcoming 11th season of "The Ultimate Fighter."
UFC officials confirmed the assignment during Saturday's The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort.
The other part of the surprise? Ortiz will coach against Chuck Liddell, not Forrest Griffin, on the upcoming season of the reality series, and the coaches will meet in a season-ending fight.
After dropping a close split decision to Griffin last month in the UFC 106 main event, Ortiz campaigned for the two to be coaches on "TUF 11." UFC officials, though, chose Liddell instead.
"TUF 11" begins taping in January and debuts on Spike TV in April. The show is expected to feature middleweight fighters.
Ortiz and Liddell, who have fought twice before (Liddell is 2-0 with two knockout wins), will both coach for the second time on "TUF." Ortiz coached opposite Frank Shamrock on "TUF 3," and Liddell coached against Randy Couture on the debut season in 2005.
"The world knows there is no love lost between Tito and Chuck," UFC president Dana White stated. "These two guys will do whatever it takes to beat each other. Whether it's fighting or checkers, Chuck wants to beat Tito, and Tito wants to beat Chuck. ... On season 11 of 'The Ultimate Fighter,' we'll see which legend can score the upper hand when it comes to coaching the next batch of rising stars."
As MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) reported last month, Ortiz wanted the coaching gig to set up a season-ending trilogy fight with Griffin.
"It'd be awesome," Ortiz said. "We'd break records with that one."
At the time, UFC president Dana White said the coaching setup and rubber match was a possibility but far from a definite. In fact, Ortiz, who sat out of competition from May 2008 until last month due to a back injury and contract holdout, only recently patched up a once-hostile relationship with White to return to the organization. With Ortiz a draw but unlikely to contend for a title anytime soon, the "TUF 10" coaching assignment may be the best use of his time in early 2010. However, he'll have pressure to jazz up a series that's become increasingly stale in recent seasons.
Liddell, who entered a semi-retirement earlier this year, can certainly do the same. The fan favorite was exposed to a new audience as he competed on the recent season of ABC's "Dancing with the Stars," and though White said Liddell would be entering retirement following a knockout loss to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in April, "The Iceman" never officially declared he was walking away from the sport. In fact, it soon became apparent that Liddell wanted one more run in the sport.
"I am excited for the opportunity to coach on 'The Ultimate Fighter,' especially since I get a chance to beat Tito again," Liddell stated. "This is a perfect chance for me to help young fighters grow and it's a chance for me to get another win against Tito."
mmajunkie.com
'TUF' 10 Post-Fight Video : Look Back at Finale w/t JON JONES
LAS VEGAS – There was no protest, no complaint. In fact, there was only peace.
As Jon Jones (9-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) addressed the media at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas following his disqualification loss at The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale, "Bones" was reserved, unassuming and unwilling to claim any sort of controversy regarding the result of his bout with Matt Hamill (8-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC).
"I try to look at everything in life for the best, and now I'm not worried about being undefeated anymore," Jones told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "I can go out there and be more relaxed."
Jones looked to be cruising to victory over Hamill when he unleashed a few quick, downward and – most importantly – illegal elbows to his opponent's face. After referee Steve Mazzagatti first deducted a point and then waved off the contest, the use of the first instant replay in Nevada State Athletic Commission history left what appeared to be a TKO win for Jones as a disqualification loss.
Jones admitted he was surprised when the verdict was issued, but he didn't appear at all focused on the negatives of losing his unblemished career record.
"I thought I won, and when they said I lost, I was like, 'No, this can't be happening,'" Jones said. "But I lost. That said, everything happens for a reason.
"I just try to look at situations and stumbles and stay strong and bounce back stronger. I'm going to bounce back stronger. No, 'I'm undefeated. I'm so nervous.' I don't have that feeling anymore. I have a loss on my record, so it's OK."
Jones said he never intended to deliver any illegal strikes. But after wailing away on his opponent with an extended flurry, the always-creative Jones was simply looking for a means to attack successfully.
"I was hitting him so many times with so many legal blows, I was looking for more ways to get in and try to hit him more effectively," Jones said. "I hit him – I don't know. I hit him so many times, and they didn't stop it. I just kept going, and it came instinctively to come down the middle."
Opinions of Mazzagatti's handling of the situation are bound to vary widely among MMA observers. While Jones refused to complain with any vigor, count the 22-year-old New Yorker in the camp of those who believe the bout should have been stopped well before the illegal shots were ever thrown.
"I'm not positive what the rules are," Jones said. "But I think that 14 or 15 unanswered punches, it should be stopped. I said it in so many interviews, that I respect [Hamill] a lot for the inspiration that he is. It was awkward to keep hitting him like that.
"I was just hitting him so hard with legal shots, and I didn't realize that it was an illegal shot that I was hitting him with toward the end. I was like, 'Does this not work anymore?' ... I didn't understand why it wasn't getting stopped. I was like, 'Is he waiting for me to gas or something? What is this?' I looked at [Mazzagatti] twice like, 'Why am I still hitting this guy?'"
While Jones' status as a fast-rising contender and top prospect probably won't suffer much as a result of the sure-to-be-debated result, his previously undefeated record is certainly a thing of the past. While Jones said he enjoyed the perfect mark while it lasted, he's comfortable with the results of Saturday night.
"I definitely took a lot of pride in being undefeated," Jones said. "I'm proud to be a martial artist, and I strive so hard to be the best I can be. But everything happens for a reason.
"I feel great. I'm healthy. I have no injuries. I get to go home and see my daughter and my girlfriend. I haven't seen them in so long. ... I don't really care about the loss. I'm at peace."
mmajunkie.com
mma.fanhouse.com
'TUF' 10 Post-Fight Video: Look Back at Finale w/t KIMBO SLICE
LAS VEGAS -- Jon Jones, Kimbo Slice and the Nevada State Athletic Commission Executive Director Keith Kizer met with the media on Saturday night following The Ultimate Fighter finale in different moods. While Jones said he was "at peace" with his DQ loss to Matt Hamill, the previously undefeated fighter sounded very frustrated. Meanwhile, Slice seemed relieved to get back into the win column and talked about what the future holds for him in the UFC.
Kizer talked about the controversy surrounding the end of the Jones-Hamill fight. The post-fight press conference videos are below.
mma.fanhouse.com
How Jon Jones Broke Matt Hamill's Shoulder?
Before the illegal downward elbow strikes that brought about his disqualification, Jon Jones first put Matt Hamill in real trouble with this leg trip takedown that turned the tide of the fight and, according to Hamill's trainer, broke his left shoulder.
Hamill still fought on after that point and did a surprisingly good job, considering the injury, of defending against the onslaught from Jones that soon followed. That's why you can't really argue that it was the takedown and not the elbows that ended the fight. What you could argue, however, is that Hamill got a lucky break when the illegal blows gave the ref a chance to take a look at him and conclude that he was in no position to continue fighting. Odds are things would have only gotten worse for him, and they were already pretty damn bad.
mma-core.com
