Affliction may be facing an uphill battle leading towards its next event. Following its debut card, which the organization has deemed a financial success, Affliction may experience a few bumps in the road while putting together a follow-up extravaganza. First, the prize pupil of Affliction, Fedor Emelianenko, received a medical suspension that could last as long as six months.

It is hard to believe Fedor could sustain any type of injury during the brief amount of time he was in the ring against Tim Sylvia. Reports have indicated that Fedor’s suspension is due to a recurring hand injury. Did he really hit Sylvia that hard?

Despite what reports are leaked, it’s a pretty safe bet that Fedor will be cleared to fight before the October 11th event. It’s hard to imagine Affliction not being able to get around this minor pothole. That being said, Sylvia’s status for October 11th also remains in question. But does anyone really care? (more…)

If you had to pick a fighter of the month for July, who would be your choice? Forrest Griffin shocked the world when he dismantled Quinton Jackson in arguably the best division in the sport of mixed martial arts. Fedor Emelianenko also came out and proved his dominance in the heavyweight division at Affliction’s debut event. Anderson Silva might even deserve a mention after bumping up a weight class and brutalizing James Irvin.

A panel of experts over at 411mania.com seem to feel that Griffin is the consensus choice as fighter of the month. Griffin’s win shook the mma world and quickly reconfigured the top of the light heavyweight division.

Some other fighters who enjoyed an excellent July were Andrei Arlovksi, Jake Shields and Joachim Hansen. Arlovski’s win over Ben Rothwell has set him up for a shot at Fedor while Shields continued to establish his place among the welterweight elite. Hansen seized hold of the DREAM lightweight championship by avenging a previous loss to Shinya Aoki.

While quite a few fighters enjoyed a stellar July, it’s still hard to deny Griffin as being the fighter of the month.

Despite the flood of rumors, Tito Ortiz still remains unsigned by Affliction. In recent days, many have speculated that Ortiz will take on Renato “Babalu” Sobral at Affliction’s next event on October 11th. But Affliction president Tom Atencio cannot commence talks with Ortiz until August 3rd.

Both Ortiz and Atencio have publicly stated they each want the fight to happen, but for now they each must play the waiting game. Atencio told MMA Weekly that “it’s in the works”. That simple statement implies that fight fans can rest assured that they will see Ortiz inside an Affliction ring come October.

Ortiz has made no secret about his disdain for Dana White and will be fighting more than Sobral in a couple of months. In all likelihood, Ortiz will join an organization who has just started to trade blows with the mighty UFC.

He is only thirty-three years old, however Tito Ortiz seems like he has been in the fight game forever. Ortiz was one of the pioneers who helped bring mixed martial arts to the mainstream. And now that the sport is starting to really explode, Ortiz wants back in.

And why shouldn’t he? Ortiz is hardly past his prime at such a young age. Randy Couture didn’t really start to begin his rise until his early to mid-thirties. So why can’t Tito come back and be a dominant force wherever he winds up fighting?

For whatever reason Ortiz wants to give, he came up short in his last three fights. He dropped one bout to Chuck Liddell and another to Lyoto Machida while fighting to a draw with Rashad Evans. Perhaps he was too busy working on his new book or maybe he was too concerned about satisfying his new girlfriend? (more…)

Fabricio Werdum leaked some details about his next bout. In an interview that needed to be translated in his native Portuguese, he claimed that he will fight Juniors De Santos at UFC 90. Werdum also went on to state that if he emerges victorious, he will then be the next challenger for the heavyweight title.

Meanwhile, Tito Ortiz is reportedly very close to signing a deal with Affliction that will have him face Renato “Babalu” Sobral at its next event on October 11th. A clause in Ortiz’s contract prohibits Affliction from speaking with him until August 4th. It is then that Affliction will likely seal the deal and usher in Ortiz vs. Sobral as its co-main event.

In other news, three U.S. Army fighters stationed at Ft. Bening, Georgia will participate in the AFL’s (American Fight League) September 26th event that will take place in Columbus, Georgia. The event has been billed “A salute to the troops.

Tito Ortiz was on hand to check out the EliteXC action Saturday night and was also a sponsor of Scott Smith. He went on to state he has no desire to head back to the UFC and even called Dana White a “dirtbag”. Ortiz also admitted that he is willing to compete again but this point, it looks like Affliction or the EliteXC could be the next home for Ortiz to fight. Check out what Tito had to say this past weekend.

Here in the states, there seems to be some kind of mixed martial event available to watch every weekend from the comfort of your couch. Gone are the days of waiting for once-a-month events in which fighters do battle in the cage. EliteXC was just the latest mma organization to provide some action unto a nationwide audience. It may not rank among the most elite mixed martial arts organizations, but the ability to be able to rank these organizations shows that the mma movement is progressing.

The UFC still has a major foothold on most of the top fighters in the world. Therefore, it is and will likely remain the sport’s top organization. However, the fact that other fight leagues are beginning to push the UFC can only mean that the sports best will become even better. Currently, Affliction is attempting to offer some rather hefty payouts to lure some of the top fighters into its organization. But if Affliction can not develop more than a heavyweight division, it will probably fall along the wayside. However, Affliction has quickly carved out a niche of its own. (more…)

Tim Sylvia is not shying away from the camera following his 33 second loss to Fedor Emelianenko. In fact, Sylvia had the gall to state that he would like a rematch. To his credit, Sylvia did admit that he would need a few more fights before he could step back into the cage with Fedor. Nevertheless, Sylvia and his high price tag will be part of Affliction’s next event. Here’s the latest from one of the most overpaid fighters in mixed martial arts.

The always entertaining and never at a loss for words Shonie Carter recently chatted with fighthype.com. The outspoken Carter talked about Affliction and how he would love to get involved with the new company. According to Carter, the main reason he wants in is because of the money. He claimed that “fighters are going to go where the grass is greener.”

Such a mindset may filter down through the mma circuit. Why shouldn’t fighters line their pockets with as much cash as possible while they are still in their prime? Carter may be past his prime, although his sentiments probably echo through mind of most fighters.

Fighters may only have a small window of opportunity to pull in some big scores from the sport of mixed martial arts. No one will blame them for taking full advantage of the best opportunity that stands before them. Some fighters, like Carter, won’t be the least bit bashful about voicing their opinions on the matter. Before long, there could be quite a few fighters eclaiming “show me the money”.

During a Thursday night appearance on MMA Weekly’s radio show, one of the best in the business stated that he is going anywhere. UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre still has two fights remaining on his current contract and admitted he doesn’t have plans to negotiate one anywhere else other than the UFC.

In the midst of these other uprisings from other mma organization, it will bode well for the UFC to not only keep GSP but to have him not even consider jumping ship. And in light of Affliction’s latest payouts, the UFC might have to offer St. Pierre some extra coin just for good measure.

One interesting twist to this saga is that Affliction is still GSP’s sponsor despite the UFC’s recent ban on its clothing line. He maintains that he still has a strong relationship with Affliction but would like to finsih out his fighting career in the UFC.