UFC 157 Primetime: Rousey vs. Carmouche - Episode 1 of 3

This is the whole first episode and it is an amazing episode of Primetime. It truly is a must-see. Goes into depth about Ronda and her life. I recommend all of you to watch it. As always feel free to comment on it! Follow us on Twitter @Champion_Rounds

Official MMA January Rankings!

Updated as of: 1/27/13

Heavyweight: 1) Cain Velazquez
2) Junior dos Santos
3) Fabricio Werdum
4) Daniel Cormier
5) Antonio Silva
6) Frank Mir
7) Alistair Overeem
8) Stefan Struve
9) Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10) Josh Barnett

Contenders: Mark Hunt, Roy Nelson, Cheick Kongo, Gabriel Gonzaga.
Name(s) to Watch: Stipe Miocic, Travis Browne, Alexander Volkov

Light Heavyweight: 1) Jon Jones
2) Dan Henderson
3) Lyoto Machida
4) Alexander Gustafsson
5) Shogun Rua
6) Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
7) Rashad Evans
8) Phil Davis
9) Glover Teixeira
10) Ryan Bader

Contenders: Gegard Mousasi, Rampage Jackson, Anthony Johnson, Forrest Griffin.
Name(s) to Watch: James Te Huna

Middleweight: 1) Anderson Silva
2) Chris Weidman
3) Vitor Belfort
4) Chael Sonnen
5) Michael Bisping

6) Luke Rockhold

7) Mark Munoz
8) Yushin Okami
9) Brian Stann
10) Costa Philippou

Contenders: Alan Belcher, Tim Boetsch, Hector Lombard, Jake Shields, Cung Le, Ronaldo Souza.
Name(s) to Watch: Ronny Markes

Welterweight: 1) Georges St. Pierre
2) Johny Hendricks
3) Carlos Condit
4) Nick Diaz
5) Demian Maia
6) Rory MacDonald
7) Martin Kampmann
8) Jake Ellenberger
9) Jon Fitch
10) Ben Askren

Contenders: Tarec Saffeidine, Nate Marquardt, Josh Koscheck, Mike Pierce, Matt Brown.
Name(s) to Watch: Erick Silva, Tyron Woodley.

Lightweight: 1) Ben Henderson
2) Gray Maynard
3) Anthony Pettis
4) Nate Diaz
5) Gilbert Melendez
6) Donald Cerrone
7) Jim Miller
8) Michael Chandler
9) TJ Grant
10) Eddie Alvarez

Contenders: Joe Lauzon, Jamie Varner, Rafael dos Anjos, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Name(s) to Watch: Tim Means, Marcin Held.

Featherweight: 1) Jose Aldo
2) Ricardo Lamas
3) Chad Mendes
4) Frankie Edgar
5) Pat Curran
6) Chan Sung Jung
7) Dennis Siver
8) Cub Swanson
9) Nik Lentz
10) Clay Guida

Contenders: Dustin Poirier, Erik Koch, Hatsu Hioki, Hacran Dias, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Diego Nunes.
Name(s) to Watch: Marcus Brimage, Dennis Bermudez, Max Holloway.

Bantamweight: 1) Dominick Cruz
2) Renan Barao
3) Urijah Faber
4) Michael McDonald
5) Eddie Wineland
6) Brian Bowles
7) Brad Pickett
8) Bibiano Fernandes
9) Scott Jorgensen
10) Raphael Assuncao

Contenders: Tyson Nam, Mike Easton, Eduardo Dantas, Marcos Galvao, Takeya Mizugaki, Yuri Alcantara.
Name(s) to Watch: Erik Perez, Francisco Rivera, Alex Caceres.

Flyweight: 1) Demetrious Johnson
2) Joseph Benavidez
3) Ian McCall
4) John Dodson
5) Darrel Montague
6) John Moraga
7) Jussier Formiga
8) Chris Cariaso
9) Louis Gaudinot
10) John Lineker

Contenders: Darren Uyenoyama, Mitsuhisa Sunabe, Mamoru Yamaguchi, Will Campuzano, Yasuhiro Urushitani, Kentaro Watanabe.
Name(s) to Watch: Sean Santella, Josh Sampo, Tim Elliot, Sergio Pettis.

Women's Featherweight: 1) Cris Cyborg
2) Marloes Coenen
3) Milana Dudieva
4) Germaine de Randamie
5) Ediane Gomes
6) Elaina Maxwell
7) Julia Budd
8) Yana Kunitskaya
9) Romy Ruyssen
10) Hiroko Yamanaka

Contenders: Lauren Taylor, Ashley Sanchez, Fiona Maxwell.
Name(s) to Watch: Randi Miller, Veronica Rothenhausler.

Women's Bantamweight: 1) Ronda Rousey
2) Miesha Tate
3) Sara McMann
4) Alexis Davis
5) Sarah Kaufman
6) Liz Carmouche
7) Shayna Baszler
8) Sarah D’Alelio
9) Cat Zingano
10) Amanda Nunes

Contenders: Rin Nakai, Hitomi Akano, Leslie Smith, Shana Nelson.
Name(s) to Watch: Jessamyn Duke, Holly Holm

Women's Flyweight: 1) Rosi Sexton
2) Jessica Eye
3) Vanessa Porto
4) Barb Honchak
5) Zoila Gurgel
6) Sheila Gaff
7) Michelle Ould
8) Tara LaRosa
9) Munah Holland
10) Claudia Gadelha

Contenders: Reyna Cordoba, Takayo Hashi, Kalindra Carvalho Faria.
Name(s) to Watch: Jocelyn Lybarger, Sarah Maloy.

Women's Strawweight: 1) Jessica Aguilar
2) Megumi Fujii
3) Carla Esparza
4) Ayaka Hamasaki
5) Katja Kankaanpaa
6) Joanne Calderwood
7) Felice Herrig
8) Seo Hee Ham
9) Aisling Daly
10) Mei Yamaguchi

Contenders: Bec Hyatt, Yuki Tsuji, Ashley Cummins, Patricia Vidonic.
Name(s) to Watch: Tecia Torres.

Women's Atomweight: 1) Jessica Penne
2) Naho Sugiyama
3) Michelle Waterson
4) Yasuko Tamada
5) Cassie Rodish
6) Lisa Ellis
7) Kikuyo Ishiwaka
8) Lacey Schuckman
9) Misaki Takimoto
10) Nicdali Rivera-Calonic

Contenders: Satomi Akano, Stephanie Frausto Liz McCarthy, Amy Davis.
Name(s) to Watch: Laura Marcusse.

Let us know what you guys think. Tell us in the comments or on Twitter @Champion_Rounds.

Official December MMA Rankings

Updated as of: 1/13/13

Heavyweight: 1) Cain Velazquez
2) Junior dos Santos
3) Alistair Overeem
4) Fabricio Werdum
5) Daniel Cormier
6) Frank Mir
7) Antonio Silva
8) Stefan Struve
9) Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10) Josh Barnett

Contenders: Mark Hunt, Roy Nelson, Cheick Kongo, Mike Russow, Gabriel Gonzaga.
Name(s) to Watch: Stipe Miocic, Travis Browne, Alexander Volkov

Light Heavyweight: 1) Jon Jones
2) Rashad Evans
3) Dan Henderson
4) Lyoto Machida
5) Alexander Gustafsson
6) Shogun Rua
7) Phil Davis
8) Ryan Bader
9) Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
10) Rampage Jackson

Contenders: Gegard Mousasi, Glover Teixeira, Anthony Johnson, Forrest Griffin.
Name(s) to Watch: James Te Huna

Middleweight: 1) Anderson Silva
2) Chris Weidman
3) Vitor Belfort
4) Chael Sonnen
5) Michael Bisping

6) Luke Rockhold

7) Mark Munoz
8) Yushin Okami
9) Brian Stann
10) Alan Belcher

Contenders: Costa Philippou, Tim Boetsch, Hector Lombard, Jake Shields, Cung Le, Ronaldo Souza.
Name(s) to Watch: Ronny Markes

Welterweight: 1) Georges St. Pierre
2) Johny Hendricks
3) Carlos Condit
4) Nick Diaz
5) Rory MacDonald
6) Jon Fitch
7) Martin Kampmann
8) Jake Ellenberger
9) Tarec Saffiedine
10) Ben Askren

Contenders: Demian Maia, Nate Marquardt, Josh Koscheck, Mike Pierce, Matt Brown.
Name(s) to Watch: Karl Amoussou, Tarec Saffiedine, Erick Silva.

Lightweight: 1) Ben Henderson
2) Frankie Edgar
3) Gray Maynard
4) Nate Diaz
5) Gilbert Melendez
6) Donald Cerrone
7) Anthony Pettis
8) Jim Miller
9) Michael Chandler
10) Clay Guida

Contenders: Joe Lauzon, Jamie Varner, Rafael dos Anjos, Eddie Alvarez, TJ Grant, Matt Wiman.
Name(s) to Watch: Tim Means, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Marcin Held.

Featherweight: 1) Jose Aldo
2) Chad Mendes
3) Pat Curran
4) Ricardo Lamas
5) Chan Sung Jung
6) Dennis Siver
7) Hatsu Hioki
8) Cub Swanson
9) Nik Lentz
10) Erik Koch

Contenders: Dustin Poirier, Hacran Dias, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Daniel Straus, Darren Elkins.
Name(s) to Watch: Marcus Brimage, Dennis Bermudez, Max Holloway.

Bantamweight: 1) Dominick Cruz
2) Renan Barao
3) Urijah Faber
4) Michael McDonald
5) Eddie Wineland
6) Brian Bowles
7) Brad Pickett
8) Bibiano Fernandes
9) Scott Jorgensen
10) Raphael Assuncao

Contenders: Tyson Nam, Mike Easton, Eduardo Dantas, Marcos Galvao, Takeya Mizugaki, Yuri Alcantara.
Name(s) to Watch: Erik Perez, Francisco Rivera, Alex Caceres.

Flyweight: 1) Demetrious Johnson
2) Joseph Benavidez
3) John Dodson
4) Ian McCall
5) Darrel Montague
6) John Moraga
7) Jussier Formiga
8) John Lineker
9) Chris Cariaso
10) Darren Uyenoyama

Contenders: Louis Gaudinot, Mitsuhisa Sunabe, Mamoru Yamaguchi, Will Campuano, Yasuhiro Urushitani, Kentaro Watanabe.
Name(s) to Watch: Sean Santella, Josh Sampo, Tim Elliot, Sergio Pettis.

Women's Featherweight: 1) Cris Cyborg
2) Marloes Coenen
3) Milana Dudieva
4) Germaine de Randamie
5) Ediane Gomes
6) Elaina Maxwell
7) Julia Budd
8) Yana Kunitskaya
9) Romy Ruyssen
10) Hiroko Yamanaka

Contenders: Lauren Taylor, Ashley Sanchez, Fiona Maxwell.
Name(s) to Watch: Randi Miller, Veronica Rothenhausler.

Women's Bantamweight: 1) Ronda Rousey
2) Miesha Tate
3) Sara McMann
4) Alexis Davis
5) Sarah Kaufman
6) Liz Carmouche
7) Shayna Baszler
8) Sarah D’Alelio
9) Cat Zingano
10) Amanda Nunes

Contenders: Hitomi Akano, Leslie Smith, Shana Nelson.
Name(s) to Watch: Jessamyn Duke, Holly Holm

Women's Flyweight: 1) Rosi Sexton
2) Jessica Eye
3) Vanessa Porto
4) Barb Honchak
5) Zoila Gurgel
6) Sheila Gaff
7) Michelle Ould
8) Tara LaRosa
9) Munah Holland
10) Tonya Evinger

Contenders: Reyna Cordoba, Takayo Hashi, Kalindra Carvalho Faria.
Name(s) to Watch: Jocelyn Lybarger, Sarah Maloy.

Women's Strawweight: 1) Jessica Aguilar
2) Megumi Fujii
3) Carla Esparza
4) Ayaka Hamasaki
5) Katja Kankaanpaa
6) Joanne Calderwood
7) Seo Hee Ham
8) Claudia Gadelha
9) Felice Herrig
10) Aisling Daly

Contenders: Mei Yamaguchi, Bec Hyatt, Yuki Tsuji, Ashley Cummins, Patricia Vidonic.
Name(s) to Watch: Tecia Torres.

Women's Atomweight: 1) Jessica Penne
2) Naho Sugiyama
3) Kikuyo Ishiwaka
4) Michelle Waterson
5) Cassie Rodish
6) Yasuko Tamada
7) Lisa Ellis
8) Lacey Schuckman
9) Misaki Takimoto
10) Nicdali Rivera-Calonic

Contenders: Satomi Akano, Stephanie Frausto Liz McCarthy, Amy Davis.
Name(s) to Watch: Laura Marcusse.

Let us know what you guys think. Tell us in the comments or on Twitter @Champion_Rounds.

CR's 2012 MMA Awards!

 We are doing an end of the year award post for this amazing year of MMA in 2012. We cover a variety of subjects and give you our take on what was the best of the best. Let us know your choices in the comments section below!

Sam’s Awards

Fighter of the Year – Ronda Rousey: MMA had a rocky 2012, this is something that the UFC will try to change in in the year 2013. But when men’s MMA had a rocky year, women’s MMA had the best year in its history and it’s all due to one women: Ronda Rousey. Being a former Olympic bronze medalist, she smoothly made her transition into MMA with seven first round armbar finishes heading into 2012. After snapping Miesha Tate’s arm in half and doing much of the same to Sarah Kaufman in her first title defense, Rousey became a star. Her natural sex appeal, aggressive personality, and dominant fighting style put women’s MMA in the mainstream light. With what Rousey has done in only 365 days is what makes her the Fighter of the Year.

Fight of the Year – Chan Sung Jung def. Dustin Poirier via D’Arce choke at 1:07 of round 4: The equation for a fight of the year candidate consists of a back and forth brawl, people being dropped, submission attempts, and an exhilarating finish. This fight had that and a little more.  They slugged it on the feet, Jung went for multiple submissions in the second with almost getting a few, and ended up finishing Poirier with Poirier’s favorite technique. There was only one other fight that could be considered better and Dave picked it.

Round of the Year – Dustin Poirier def. Jonathan Brookins via D’Arce choke at 4:15 of round 1: Apparently Poirier loves to be in amazing fights. After he lost in his Fight of the Year bout against Jung, he was looking for a rebound fight against TUF winner, Jonathan Brookins. Brookins came out strong and aggressive, pushing Poirier against the fence and swinging for the fences. Poirier returned and eventually caught Brookins, dropping him into a sloppy takedown attempt. Poirier countered with a D’Arce choke and finished him off.

Submission of the Year – Ronda Rousey def. Miesha Tate via armbar at 4:27 of round 1: When picking a submission or knockout of the year, it will typically be a comeback win, the first of its kind, or a win with huge implications. This is the third, but we didn’t know it at the time. Rousey won the fight, but the huge explosion for women’s MMA is what causes this win to be my submission of the year. Also the arm snapping didn't hurt, well, except Miesha Tate.

KO of the Year – Edson Barboza def. Terry Etim via KO (Spinning wheel kick) at 2:02 of round 3: Did you really expect anything else? This knockout was insane. I couldn’t stop watching it for weeks. Remember the three different things a “Finish Of the Year” would need? This was the first of its kind. No one has ever knocked anyone out with a spinning wheel kick in the UFC. And Etim just happened to be frozen in time while falling unconscious.

Upset of the Year – Jamie Varner def. Edson Barboza via TKO (punches) at 3:23 of round 1: Varner’s return was a very unexpected surprise but he was supposed to be absolutely blasted by Edson Barboza, who was coming off his win over Terry Etim. Varner was about a 5-1 underdog in the betting lines heading in, but an even bigger one in people’s opinions. Varner bum rushed him and easily finished him in the first round.

Event of the Year – UFC 144: With a card filled with brutal knockouts, awesome submissions, stunning upsets, insane comebacks, and all out wars, this card was absolutely nuts. Sure there were one or two fights that weren’t that great but seriously this card was one of the best in UFC history.

Comeback of the Year – Tim Boetsch def. Yushin Okami via TKO (punches) at 0:54 of round 3: Heading into this fight, Boetsch was meant to be a rebound win for Okami, who was coming off of his failed title shot. Okami was well on his way to a possible 30-26 or 29-27 decision win but Boetsch came out into the third round a different man. He completely demolished Okami in seconds into the third round, pulling off one of the best comebacks of all time and best upsets of the year.

Prospect of the Year – Max Holloway: At only 21 years old, Max Holloway has already amassed a 2-1 record in the UFC. He possesses some of the most technical striking in the UFC’s featherweight division. His last two wins over Justin Lawrence and Pat Schilling are just the beginning of what this young prospect can do.

Most Improved Fighter – Matt Brown: Heading into 2012, Matt Brown was on the brink of being released from the UFC. He was 1-4 with all his losses being submissions in the second round. His New Year resolution was apparently to become a better fighter, and boy did he succeed at that. He ended up going 4-0 in 2012 with two big upsets and three T/KO finishes. That is the definition of improved.

Moment of the Year – Jose Aldo Celebrating with Brazilian Crowd: At UFC 142 in Brazil, the featherweight champion Jose Aldo capped off the night with a first round KO win over Chad Mendes. After his win, he ran into the wild crowd. At first, I was worried because it seemed as though he was being mauled. But then he was put upon the shoulders of a fan and was carried while swinging the Brazilian flag. It was a very emotional and amazing scene.

Story of the Year – UFC 149 Injury Bug: Not only is this the story of the year because it’s insane, but because it’s extremely comical. The amount of injuries that this card sustained is absolutely mindboggling. I will give you a quick rundown of what happened: Bisping was replaced by Lombard against Boetsch. Yoshihiro Akiyama was supposed to fight Thiago Alves but pulled out, Siyar Bahadurzada filled in. Alves pulled out and Chris Clements filled in. Bahadurzada pulled out and Matt Riddle filled in. Thiago Silva was supposed to fight Shogun but pulled out and Shogun left the card to fight Brandon Vera later on. Jose Aldo, originally headlining against Erik Koch, pulled out and Urijah Faber and Renan Barao ended up headlining after Dominick Cruz pulled out of his fight with Faber. George Roop was supposed to fight Antonio Carvalho but pulled out and Daniel Pineda filled in. Big Nog, originally fighting Cheick Kongo, was still healing from his broken arm he got from Frank Mir. And last but not least, Claude Patrick was going to fight James Head but pulled out and Brian Ebersole filled in. It not only was terrible but led to one of the worst cards in MMA history.

Dave’s Awards

Fighter of the Year – Matt Brown: Yes, Matt “The Immortal” Brown. Brown went 4-0 with 3 of those being finished by (T)KO. He destroyed one of the most highly touted prospects in MMA in Stephen Thompson. And put a screeching halt to Mike Swick’s comeback ride. Brown not only did all of this in a dominating fashion but also made each fight incredibly fun to watch. Matt Brown is why I watch MMA. He is talented and fun to watch. And in 2012 Matt Brown was the best.

Fight of the Year – Joe Lauzon def. Jamie Varner via triangle choke at 2:44 of Round 3: This fight was freaking insane! Everyone watching this around me lost their minds on at least 5 different times. It was a back-and-forth affair that ended with a fantastic scramble that summed up the fight as a whole and got Lauzon back in the win column.

Round of the Year – Ivan Menjivar def. John Albert via RNC at 3:45 of Round 1: This round was my favorite because I was certain it was over 2 times and each time the other guy pulled it out somehow. Albert came at Menjivar like a wild animal. Albert was destroying him but Menjivar, the wily vet, kept his cool and somehow came back and won in one of the most fun fights you’ll ever see.

Submission of the Year – Wolfgang Janssen def. Aaron Armstrong via Flying Reverse Triangle at 1:57 of Round 2: This fight didn’t mean much and it was in a small promotion but it is one of the most amazing technical grappling maneuvers I have ever seen. He didn’t get lucky in a scramble and run with it. Janssen was looking for it and got it. Please go watch it on YouTube NOW!

KO of the Year – Johny Hendricks def. Martin Kampmann via KO at :46 of Round 1: Both of these guys had a ton of steam coming into this fight and it lived up to the hype. Most people thought Hendricks would outwrestle Kampmann but he instantly put a big left hand on Kampmann and Kampmann went flying back like a punch from Superman in a comic book. 46 seconds in and we found the scariest man at 170. Watch out GSP!

Upset of the Year – Tim Boetsch def. Yushin Okami via TKO at :54 of Round 3: This fight was supposed to be a one sided beating, and for 2 rounds, it was. Most people thought Okami would just throw Boetsch around and blanket him, and for 2 rounds, he did. But then Boetsch decided to take Okami’s head off and he did. Incredible.

Event – UFC 152: Jones vs. Belfort: I’m a little biased because I was there close to the action but the action was nonstop during this one. The night started out with 3 straight 1^st round finishes. Then there was Grant vs. Dunham which could have been Fight of the Year. Then Vinny Magalhaes’ submission over Igor Pokrajac was a thing of beauty. A few fun fights later and you get two amazing title fights! The first ever Flyweight Title fight which was a back-and-forth technical battle and then Jon Jones defended his light heavyweight title against legend Vitor Belfort. That fight alone was amazing. All in all it was the best time I had watching MMA this year.

Comeback of the Year- Martin Kampmann def. Jake Ellenberger via TKO at 1:40 of Round 2: I thought Jake was going to destroy Martin. And he was well on his way to doing so until Martin somehow landed a knee out of nowhere that sent Jake to the ground in a heap. I was speechless at the time. I truly felt that Ellenberger would easily win that fight, but you can't ever count out Kampmann.

Prospect of the Year – Erik Perez: Perez is only 23 years old, is 2-0 in the UFC and both of those wins came against quality opponents. Not only that, but both of those wins ended in the first round. On top of all of this, he trains at Jackson’s camp. This kid has a huge chance to do something amazing at 135 pounds.

Most Improved Fighter – Cub Swanson: Cub has always been good but if you were to tell me a year ago he would go 3-0 against great competition and all of those wins coming by way of KO, I would think you’re nuts. He got manhandled by Chad Mendes, barely won against Mackens Semerzier and then got destroyed by Ricardo Lamas. But Cub went on a rampage in 2012 and most recently destroyed fellow rising star, Charles Oliveira in just under 3 minutes. The sky is the limit for Cub.

Moment of the Year – Vitor Belfort’s armbar attempt on Jon Jones at UFC 152: This fight was a joke to begin with. You had the scariest man alive, Jon Jones, taking on aging and undersized Belfort squaring off on short notice. It was ridiculous and you could tell from the ring of the bell that Jones was going to destroy Belfort. Jones took Belfort down immediately and started to land vicious elbows. But then out of nowhere, Belfort locks on an armbar that made Jones wince in pain and the Air Canada Centre arena erupted in a noise like no other. I’m a huge Jones fan and even I wanted to see Belfort pull it off. It was incredible and even though Jones defended it off, it was an amazing moment in MMA history.

Story of the Year – Women’s MMA makes it to the UFC: This was a huge moment for MMA history as women will now be able to fight under the UFC banner. It was a long time coming and I am so glad it has happened. I just hope that they sign a ton of fighters and handle the women’s divisions better than they have handled the 145, 135 and 125 divisions for men. Dana needs to keep them off of Facebook and feature them often. I can’t wait  for this chapter in UFC’s history to begin.

CR Exclusive Interview with Sam Alvey

"Smilin’" Sam Alvey is a tall 185er who is 19-4 (11 wins by KO) with some impressive wins over guys like Karl Amoussou and Augusto Montano. Alvey is just coming off of a stint as a cast member on The Ultimate Fighter 16 on FX. Alvey was not asked back to fight on the Finale card but when some doors are closed, others will open. Alvey is now going to fight Elvis Mutapcic at MFC 36 on February 15^th for the middleweight title. Alvey is very excited for the opportunity. He took some time to talk with us before the holidays about TUF, MFC, Bellator, Team Quest and his thoughts on Ronda Rousey’s main event status.

Check it out:

Championship Rounds: How has your life changed since being on TUF?

Sam Alvey: You know, what my life consists of is basically the same things. I get up, I train, I come home. I go back to the gym, I come home again and back to the gym. Same thing every day. It is cool though, I have been recognized 11 times outside of sporting events.

CR: What was your experience like living inside the TUF house? And how were all the personalities?

SA: Everyone assumes it is a constant mile-a-minute ride, but the truth is, it’s boring almost the entire time. You work out for about; well team Carwin we worked out for 4 hours a day. Team Nelson worked out for 2 hours. And the rest of the time you’re back at the house. You know, some of the personalities really made things easier. Like Igor he is one of the biggest personalities I’ve ever met. Matt Secor, I love him to death, he talks a lot but you know what, it was fun listening to him too because there was nothing to do.

CR: After being around Dana for a little bit, what was your take on him.

SA: He is the exact same way as he seems on camera. He knows what he is doing, down to business and if he wants something he will get it. And that being said I really liked him. I think he represents the sport well.

CR: Were you surprised, like we were, that you did not fight in the finale?

SA: Yes, I was very surprised and even more so that no one fought in the finale. It was a 3 man finale [with Roy Nelson, Colton Smith, and Mike Ricci]. But I did get to go and watch my good friend Colton win and it was a great event. Pat Barry was amazing. Even Roy Nelson, for as short as he came up on the coaching side of things, definitely can fight.

CR: How do you feel about fighting for MFC and fighting for a title?

SA: It is a great opportunity. It is one of the bigger organizations in the world and the biggest in Canada. It is my home. My teammate Richie Whitson fought for them about a year ago a couple times and watching him really made me a fan of the organization. So, I'm looking forward to stepping in the ring and impressing everyone that watches.

CR: So, what do you think of your opponent, Elvis Mutapcic? What do you think he brings to the table and how do you see that fight going down?

SA: He is kinda like the T-2. He is good at striking, he is really fast, and he trains with wrestlers constantly. He is just the next breed of fighter and I’m going to get in the cage and show him I am too. So, it’s going to be a great fight and anyone that watches will leave that arena or broadcast impressed.

CR: What is it like training at Team Quest on a daily basis?

SA: It’s the hardest training I’ve ever had. I’ve worked out at gyms around the world and nothing is compared to Team Quest. They just have this drive led by Dan Henderson. Then the coaches he has brought in: Daniel Woirin, Ricardo Feliciano, Bryan Harper, are all top notch. When I win my next fight it will be because of them and I couldn’t have done it at any other gym.

CR: So, you fought some really great fights in Bellator. What was your experience with Bellator like and if you ever had the opportunity would you ever go back?

SA: You know what? It was a good experience but I don’t know if I would go back or not. They would have to talk with me. They just didn’t seem to like me at all (laughs). They asked me before the tournaments, ‘Who would you want to fight the most?’ I told them, ‘Last year’s champ’, because I wanted to go all in. I love striking and I’m good at wrestling too. I just thought it was a great matchup for me. And then they asked who my least favorite opponent was and I told them I’d beat [Vitor] Vianna but you know a black belt like that is pretty intense and he trains with some of the best in the world also. And that is who they matched me up with; which is fine because I will fight anyone at any time. I also personally thought I won that fight but two judges saw it a different way but life goes on.

CR: Yea, that fight was extremely close. So, there is some noise coming from your camp that they are upset, and rightfully so in my opinion, that Dan Henderson is fighting Lyoto Machida underneath Ronda Rousey and her title fight. So, is it true that some people are upset about it and what are your feelings about it?

SA: Well, I don’t want to put words in anyone’s mouth because everyone knows she is a great athlete and all that. However, my personal opinion is that she hasn’t earned it. Dana White says she is the title holder and the title holder will always be the main event. But she was given the title, she hasn’t fought for it. Then you have Dan Henderson in there who has fought everyone from around the world and left from two organizations with three different title belts. He does deserve to be the main event but he is happy just fighting and just like everyone else from Team Quest, he just loves the sport.

CR: Yea I was kind of shocked, to be honest, when they announced Ronda as the main event. But one last question. How do you see the Fight with Dan and Machida going down?

SA: My man Dan is as good as it gets. I don’t think Machida has what it takes to beat him. Dan’s got more power than Machida and he is a better wrestler than Machida. Dan works the clinch better than anyone in the UFC except for maybe Anderson Silva. I just think it’s a bad matchup for Machida and I look forward to see Dan knocking him out or submitting him.

CR: Thank you so much for taking your time and doing this with us. We wish you luck in your fight.

SA: Thanks.

Sam Alvey was the nicest guy on TUF 16 and might be the nicest guy I have ever talked to over the phone. Make sure you keep an eye on Alvey because he will be making some huge splashes in the next few years. Make sure to follow him on Twitter @smilensam and watch his fight in February on AXS TV.

Official November MMA Rankings

So here is how our rankings are going to work; we are going to re-post them once a month but there will be a link on the side for visitors to click on rather than having to dig through our posting history to find them. We will consistently edit the rankings whenever it is needed. Because these are still a work in progress, there will probably be mistakes and changes in the coming days.

Heavyweight: 1) Cain Velazquez
2) Junior dos Santos
3) Alistair Overeem
4) Fabricio Werdum
5) Daniel Cormier
6) Frank Mir
7) Antonio Silva
8) Stefan Struve
9) Big Nog
10) Josh Barnett

Contenders: Mark Hunt, Roy Nelson, Cheick Kongo, Mike Russow, Shane Carwin.
Name(s) to Watch: Stipe Miocic, Travis Browne, Alexander Volkov

Light Heavyweight: 1) Jon Jones
2) Rashad Evans
3) Dan Henderson
4) Lyoto Machida
5) Alexander Gustafsson
6) Shogun Rua
7) Phil Davis
8) Vitor Belfort
9) Ryan Bader
10) Lil Nog

Contenders: Rampage Jackson, Gegard Mousasi, Glover Teixeira, Anthony Johnson, Forrest Griffin.
Name(s) to Watch: James Te Huna

Middleweight: 1) Anderson Silva
2) Chris Weidman
3) Chael Sonnen
4) Michael Bisping
5) Luke Rockhold

6)Mark Munoz

7) Yushin Okami
8) Brian Stann
9) Alan Belcher
10) Costa Philippou

Contenders: Tim Boetsch, Hector Lombard, Jake Shields, Cung Le, Ronaldo Souza, Mamed Khalidov.
Name(s) to Watch: Ronny Markes

Welterweight: 1) GSP
2) Johny Hendricks
3) Carlos Condit
4) Nick Diaz
5) Rory MacDonald
6) Jon Fitch
7) Martin Kampmann
8) Jake Ellenberger
9) Nate Marquardt
10) Ben Askren

Contenders: Demian Maia, Josh Koscheck, Siyar Bahadurzada, Mike Pierce, Matt Brown.
Name(s) to Watch: Karl Amoussou, Tarec Saffiedine, Erick Silva.

Lightweight: 1) Ben Henderson
2) Frankie Edgar
3) Gray Maynard
4) Nate Diaz
5) Gilbert Melendez
6) Donald Cerrone
7) Anthony Pettis
8) Jim Miller
9) Clay Guida
10) Michael Chandler

Contenders: Joe Lauzon, Jamie Varner, Rafael dos Anjos, Eddie Alvarez, TJ Grant, Matt Wiman, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Name(s) to Watch: Tim Means, Marcin Held.

Featherweight: 1) Jose Aldo
2) Chad Mendes
3) Pat Curran
4) Ricardo Lamas
5) Chan Sung Jung
6) Dennis Siver
7) Hatsu Hioki
8) Diego Nunes
9) Cub Swanson
10) Erik Koch

Contenders: Dustin Poirier, Hacran Dias, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Daniel Straus, Darren Elkins, Patricio Freire.
Name(s) to Watch: Marcus Brimage, Dennis Bermudez.

Bantamweight: 1) Dominick Cruz
2) Renan Barao
3) Urijah Faber
4) Michael McDonald
5) Eddie Wineland
6) Brian Bowles
7) Brad Pickett
8) Bibiano Fernandes
9) Scott Jorgensen
10) Raphael Assuncao

Contenders: Tyson Nam, Mike Easton, Eduardo Dantas, Marcos Galvao, Takeya Mizugaki.
Name(s) to Watch: Erik Perez, Francisco Rivera, Alex Caceres.

Flyweight: 1) Demetrious Johnson
2) Joseph Benavidez
3) John Dodson
4) Ian McCall
5) Darrel Montague
6) John Moraga
7) Jussier Formiga
8) John Lineker
9) Chris Cariaso
10) Darren Uyenoyama

Contenders: Louis Gaudinot, Mitsuhisa Sunabe, Mamoru Yamaguchi, Will Campuano, Yasuhiro Urushitani, Kentaro Watanabe.
Name(s) to Watch: Sean Santella, Josh Sampo, Tim Elliot, Sergio Pettis.

Women's Featherweight: 1) Cris Cyborg
2) Marloes Coenen
3) Milana Dudieva
4) Germaine de Randamie
5)  Elaina Maxwell
6) Julia Budd
7) Ediene Gomes
8) Hiroko Yamanaka
9) Yana Kunitskaya
10) Romy Ruyssen

Contenders: Lauren Taylor, Ashley Sanchez, Fiona Maxwell.
Name(s) to Watch: Randi Miller, Veronica Rothenhausler.

Women's Bantamweight: 1) Ronda Rousey
2) Miesha Tate
3) Sara McMann
4) Sarah Kaufman
5) Shayna Baszler
6) Alexis Davis
7) Liz Carmouche
8) Cat Zingano
9) Amanda Nunes
10) Rin Nakai

Contenders: Hitomi Akano, Sarah D’Alelio, Leslie Smith, Shana Nelson.
Name(s) to Watch: Jessamyn Duke, Holly Holm

Women's Flyweight: 1) Rosi Sexton
2) Jessica Eye
3) Vanessa Porto
4)  Barb Honchak
5) Zoila Gurgel
6) Sheila Gaff
7) Michelle Ould
8) Tara LaRosa
9) Aisling Daly
10) Munah Holland

Contenders: Tonya Evinger, Reyna Cordoba, Takayo Hashi, Kalindra Carvalho Faria.
Name(s) to Watch: Jocelyn Lybarger, Sarah Maloy.

Women's Strawweight: 1) Jessica Aguilar
2) Megumi Fujii
3) Ayaka Hamasaki
4) Carla Esparza
5) Katjan Kankaanpaa
6) Seo Hee Ham
7) Joanne Calderwood
8) Mei Yamaguchi
9) Claudia Gadelha
10) Felice Herrig

Contenders: Yuki Tsuji, Ashley Cummins, Patricia Vidonic, Alex Chambers.
Name(s) to Watch: Paige VanZant, Tecia Torres.

Women's Atomweight: 1) Jessica Penne
2) Naho Sugiyama
3) Kikuyo Ishiwaka
4) Yasuko Tamada
5) Michelle Waterson
6) Lisa Ellis
7) Lacey Schuckman
8) Misaki Takimoto
9) Stephanie Frausto
10) Nicdali Rivera-Calonic

Contenders: Satomi Akano, Liz McCarthy, Cassie Rodish, Amy Davis.
Name(s) to Watch: Laura Marcusse.

Let us know what you guys think. Tell us in the comments or on Twitter @Champion_Rounds.

Women's MMA Rankings: September Edition

So we here at CR have decided to bring back rankings (we had them when we first started but scrapped them) and we’re bringing more to the table than most do. We are bringing in women’s MMA and we are ranking them from atomweight to featherweight, including Pound-for-Pound. We look forward to doing this every month, updating and discussing with you guys. We did include people under suspension and also people who have been out for an extended period of time.

Without further ado, here are our rankings:

Ronda celebrating her win over Miesha Tate
Photo via MMAMania.com

WMMA P4P:

1) Ronda Rousey

2) Cris Cyborg

3) Naho Sugiyama

4) Jessica Aguilar

5) Tara LaRosa

6) Megumi Fujii

7) Marloes Coenen

8) Miesha Tate

9) Jessica Penne

10) Rosi Sexton

Cris Cyborg
Photo via Esther Lin/Strikeforce

Featherweight:

1) Cris Cyborg

2) Marloes Coenen

3) Milana Dudieva

4) Germaine de Randamie

5) Rin Nakai

6) Elaina Maxwell

7) Hiroko Yamanaka

8) Romy Ruyssen

9) Julia Budd

10) Ediane Gomes

Ronda Rousey

Bantamweight:

1) Ronda Rousey

2) Miesha Tate

3) Sarah Kaufman

4) Sara McMann

5) Alexis Davis

6) Liz Carmouche

7) Shayna Baszler

8) Sarah D'Alelio

9) Amanda Nunes

10) Julie Kedzie

Tara LaRosa
Photo via Cagepotato.com

Flyweight:

1) Tara LaRosa

2) Rosi Sexton

3) Cat Zingano

4) Sheila Gaff

5) Barb Honchak

6) Munah Holland

7) Aisling Daly

8) Jessica Eye

9) Takayo Hashi

10) Reyna Cordoba

Jessica Aguilar
Photo via MMAWeekly.com

Strawweight:

1) Jessica Aguilar

2) Megumi Fujii

3) Zoila Gurgel

4) Ayaka Hamasaki

5) Carla Esparza

6) Katjan Kankaanpaa

7) Seo Hee Ham

8) Mei Yamaguchi

9) Felice Herrig

10) Ashley Cummins

Naho Sugiyama
Photo via Sherdog.com

Atomweight:

1) Naho Sugiyama

2) Jessica Penne

3) Kikuyo Ishiwaka

4) Yasuko Tamada

5) Michelle Waterson

6) Lisa Ellis

7) Misaki Takimoto

8) Amy Davis

9) Naoko Omura

10) Nicdali Rivera-Calonic

So what do you guys think? Let me know in the comments section on what you guys either agreed on or disagreed on.

Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman

Sam’s Picks

Main Card

Ronda Rousey vs. Sarah Kaufman: Sarah Kaufman seems to be extremely overlooked heading into this fight. She has amazing striking with great cardio and amazing chin. Of course her ground game is her one weakness and that is Ronda’s specialty. Rousey still hasn’t shown much improvement in the striking department, as it is still rather rudimentary. I’m sure that she has diligently at that aspect of her career but Kaufman will certainly be better on the feet. Although I do see Rousey continuing her dominance = Rousey via 1^st round armbar.

Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza vs. Derek Brunson: Once again, another big underdog that shouldn’t be so overlooked. Brunson is a very powerful wrestler but that could very well be his downfall. Souza is arguably the best BJJ in MMA today. Although Souza did technically lose to Grove, Dave didn’t watch that fight, I did and Brunson won that fight, even the cocky Grove admitted it to Derek afterwards. But that doesn’t change much heading into this fight. I see Brunson going for the takedown early and Souza snapping on the triangle = Souza via 1^st round triangle.

Roger Bowling vs. Tarec Saffiedine: Now this is an awesome fight. I agree with Dave on the fact that Tarec is one of the more underrated fighters in MMA. Bowling is extremely explosive but if Saffiedine can survive the first round onslaught, he should take an easy decision after picking him apart and even possibly finishing him = Saffedine via unanimous decision. (For our interview with Tarec click here)

Lumumba Sayers vs. Anthony Smith: Sayers has really impressed me lately with his KO power and submission skills. Because he has such heavy hands, I can see him knocking Smith out early as Smith’s chin is very suspect = Sayers via 1^st round KO.

TJ Cook vs. Ovince St. Preux: OSP has a very bright future ahead of him. With only 1 loss in his last 9 to Gegard Mousasi, OSP is very well rounded and TJ Cook hasn’t beaten anyone with a name to show me that he can beat someone like OSP. Cook’s submission defense is very bad so I see a submission after a close first round = OSP via 2^nd round guillotine.

Prelims

Julie Kedzie vs. Miesha Tate = Tate via unanimous decision. (Click here for the prelim preview)

Bobby Green vs. Matt Ricehouse = Ricehouse via split decision.

Adlan Amagov vs. Keith Berry = Amagov via 1^st round submission

Germaine de Randamie vs. Hiroko Yamanaka = Yamanaka via unanimous decision.

Dave’s Picks

Main Card

Ronda Rousey vs. Sarah Kaufman: This one is for the 135-pound title. This fight will be amazing and a ton of fun. Rousey is arguably the best female fighter alive and I think her perfect streak will continue here. Rousey has won every fight by way of first round armbar and if you include her amateur career that is 7 armbars in a row…and by the way all of those came in the first round! She is an incredible athlete and Kaufman will be overwhelmed here. I think at this point in their careers Meisha Tate is better than Sarah Kaufman and Rousey just broke Tate’s arm in half. = Rousey by armbar in round 1.

Ronaldo Souza vs. Derek Brunson: Souza is a BJJ freak and he is facing a guy who just lost to Kendall Grove. Not much to think about in this one. Brunson’s only chance is to land a big punch or kick and KO Souza but if Souza can take out Robbie Lawler then he can handle Brunson. = Souza by submission in round 2.

Roger Bowling vs. Tarec Saffiedine: This fight is going to be a brawl. Tarec is a very good technical striker with a great chin and a very solid grappling style. He is one of the most underrated fighters in the sport and is incredibly well rounded. Bowling is more of a sloppy brawler and has a chance to win but Tarec is better in every aspect and has never been KO’d. I see Tarec picking him apart and, if need be he can take it to the ground and control him there. = Tarec by unanimous decision. (For our interview with Tarec click here)

Lumumba Sayers vs. Anthony Smith: Sayers has been impressive as of late with his KO of Antwain Britt in 28 seconds and submitting Scott Smith in 1 minute and 34 seconds. Smith did not have a great start to his career but has gone 11-2 in his last 13 fights. However Sayers has faced and defeated better competition than Smith and I think he will take this one. = Sayers by TKO in round 2.

T.J. Cook vs. Ovince St. Preux: OSP is a superb athlete and is pretty well rounded. Cook, in my opinion, has not proven himself enough to say he could hang with OSP. I think Cook has a problem with submission defense and OSP has good enough submissions to pull it off. = OSP by submission in round 3.

Prelims

Julie Kedzie vs. Miesha Tate: Tate by submission in round 2. (Click here for the prelim preview)

Bobby Green vs. Matt Ricehouse: Green by unanimous decision.

Adlan Amagov vs. Keith Berry: Amagov by TKO in round 1.

Germaine de Randamie vs. Hiroko Yamanaka: Hiroko by unanimous decision.