The middle of the week has crept up like an unsuspecting left hook. As the weekend approaches, it is the EliteXC who is ready to throw the punches. But they’ll have to land some stiff shots to compete with all the hard-hitting action that took place last weekend. Let’s start swinging with the Wednesday Crunch.

Fightticker.com picked up the Q and A’s from the latest EliteXC conference call. See what Robbie Lawler, Scott Smith and company had to say about this weekend’s upcoming action.

MMA Weekly offers its updated world rankings throughout every weight class. Quinton Jackson and Tim Sylvia still are ranked way too high.

Robbie Lawler has built up quite a resume heading into this weekend’s EliteXC main event against Scott Smith. 411mania.com offers an extensive profile on Lawler as well as some highlights from his past fights.

Gina Corano will be signing autographs at the world famous Comic-Convention today in San Diego according to the Orlando Sentinel. GSP will be also be featured there later this week.

Kevin Lole of Yahoo Sports lauds Affliction’s debut event and explains why the UFC has reason to be worried.

Over on the WEC website, welterweight title holder Carlos Condit is portrayed as a champion in and out of the cage.

Affliction’s payouts for its debut event greatly exceeded that of its UFC rival. Most of the fighters are probably busy spending their ducats on a lavish gift following this weekend. If Affliction showed anything, it’s that it can line the pockets of its fighters quite nicely.

Fedor Emelianenko: $300,000 (no win bonus)
That’s it for the headliner of the night and the world’s most dominant heavyweight
Tim Sylvia: $800,000
This absolutely baffling. Almost $30K a second to be a punching bag?

Andrei Arlovski: $750,000 (includes $250,000 win bonus)
Well deserved payday for the best fight of the night
Ben Rothell: $250,000
Big Ben took a beating and put in a game effort, a little too much coin though

Josh Barnett: $300,000 (no win bonus)
A clutch KO in an otherwise boring fight. May be a bit too inflated of a payout
Pedro Rizzo: $70,000
More than Pedro would have made anywhere else

Mark Hominick: $10,000 (includes $5,000 win bonus)
Not a bad payout for this up and comer
Savant Young: $7,000
In the midst of all these high salaries, he receives busboy pay

Renato “Babalu” Sobral: $90,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
He was on his best behavior and it paid off
Mike Whitehead: $50,000
Maybe now he could buy a nickname

Matt Lindland: $300,000 (includes $75,000 win bonus)
Could be more happy with his pay than his return to ring
Fabio Nascimento: $20,00O
He’ll take what he can get as he will never make as much as the real Fabio

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: $50,000 (no win bonus)
Somehow it seems to miniscule for one of the better fighters in the business
Edwin Dewees: $15,000
Take the money and run, did he really think he had a chance?

Vitor Belfort: $140,000 (includes $70,000 win bonus)
For winning the fight with a broken hand, we say bravo!
Terry Martin: $30,000
Still not a bad payday for getting dropped in the second round

The week is just about over and everyone can now yell out TGIF. It won’t be long until more screams fill the arenas where tomorrow’s two big events will take place. Clear your throats and get ready to shout as we get you ready for all the action with The Friday Crunch.

The Southtown Star newspaper is reporting that UFC 90 will take place at the All State Arena in Chicago, Illinois on October 25th.

MMA Weekly takes a look at each fight on the card at tomorrow’s UFC Fight Night 14 that will take place in The Pearl, Nevada.

411media.com runs through the Affliction card and tries to pick the winners as each staff member offers his take on how all the action will unfold.

How great of a pound for pound fighter is Anderson Silva? UFC.com’s Thomas Gerbasi responds with a feature on Silva’s chase for greatness.

Fightline.com claims that Quinton Jackson may have injured a woman and her unborn child during his rampage through the streets of Costa Mesa, California on Tuesday.

After the announcement of their fight which is set for UFC 89, both Lyoto Machida and Thiago Silva spoke out about the fight. Bloodyelbow.com has some of those words.

Fights, fights and more fights. Women are fighting, a man with a woman’s name is ready to fight and some fighters aren’t event allowed to fight. The Daily Crunch explains all of this in further detail as Thursday is filled with its fair share of fight facts.

Dan Meltzer of Yahoo Sports offers his take on Dana White’s bold statements about the UFC taking on all comers. Apparently, White and the UFC aren’t backing down from a fight with any mma organization.

Everything costs money nowadays and mma fighters are taking full advantage of every opportunity to cash in on their fame. Sherdog’s Jason Probst looks into the idea of putting a price on fame.

EliteXC will feature another women’s bout on July 26th when Shayna Baszler takes on Christiane Cyborg. FightTicker.com caught up with Baszler to talk about the fight.

411media.com took some time out to rank the top ten welterweights in the world. The list also includes some of those fighters on the bubble.

Ten out of the eighteen fighters who participated in UFC 86 were issued medical suspensions this week. Even though he won the light heavyweight title, Forrest Griffin is one of the fighters wwho will be on the shelf for a while as reported by mma-live.com.

Matt Linland hasn’t fough in a year and a half but will step back into the cage this upcoming July 19th as part of the Affliction: Banned undercard. Instead of focusing on the fight, Linland shoots off to mmajunkie.com about his varying political views.

It was a big night for Forrest Griffin as he shocked the world by winning a unanimous decision over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Griffin’s victory has also changed the the complexion of the light heavyweight division. It’s time to get crunching in the aftermath of UFC 86.

Adding to the luster of UFC 86 was a host of preliminary fights that also encouraged spectators to rise out of their chairs. UFC.com has a complete rundown of the prelims.

Yahoo Sports compares Forest Grifffin’s rise to fame to that of UFC’s as both are enjoying a major ascension.

Todd Martin of sportsline.com provides some post-fight notes along with a complete analysis of each fight.

Sam Caplan over at fiveouncesofpain.com may be one of the few people who thought Rampage Jackson should have been awarded the decision over Forrest Griffin. Check out his thoughts.

MMamania.com touches on the future of the light heavyweight division and who may be the next opponent for both Jackson and Griffin.

Sherdog features an interview with the big wigs who behind the recent changes to the unified rules of mixed martial arts.

WEC Featherweight Leonard “Bad Boy” Garcia just scored a victory even though he hasn’t fought since the middle of February. Garcia has been bothered by legal troubles stemming from what he claims to be a bad choice of friends. Garcia alleges that an associate got him into a bit of hot water with some felonious drug charges. But with all that behind him, Garcia is now ready to take on new challenges in the WEC Featherweight division.

Garcia is hopeful of landing a bout at WEC 36 on September 10. Garcia’s name had surfaced as a possible participant for WEC’s August 3 event, but that has not come to fruition. Furthermore, the Bad Boy is not the first fighter to have a run in with the law affect his mma career. Other fighters mimicked Garcia in the past with their urgent need to get back into the cage as soon as their incarceration and/or legal issues were behind them.

However, mixed martial arts may be the most difficult sport to take a break from. A fighter who trains day in and day out is not on the same plane as a fighter who’s training is interrupted by court dates and jail time. So before these “rehabilitated” criminals plea bargain for another chance inside the cage, perhaps they should first return to the rigorous training that originally go them there. Mmamania.com has more on Garcia’s recent liberation from charges.

This weekend’s bout between Rampage Jackson and Forrest Griffin feature two of the top light heavyweights in the world of mixed martial arts. There may only be a few voices disputing the fact that Jackson is the world’s top light heavyweight fighter, but where does Griffin fall among the elite? A victory over Jackson would surely thrust Griffin into the upper echelon of the division. Yet, for right now, Griffin ranks sixth on MMA Weekly’s list of top ten light heavyweights in the world. The list is as follows:

1. Quinton Jackson
2. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
3. Chuck Liddell
4. Lyoto Machida
5. Wanderlei Silva
6. Forrest Griffin
7. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou
8. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
9. Keith Jardine
10. Thiago Silva

Multiple losses to Jackson hasn’t dropped Liddell too far down the list. Keeping that in mind, where will Griffin be ranked if he too loses at the hands of Jackson? Rua already split a pair of fights with Rampage and yet he remains slotted at number two. But despite what has happened in the past, Jackson is now the man to beat in the light heavyweight division. However, opinions vary and rankings always change according to who writes up the list. So if the ink was flowing from your pen, how would you rank the light heavyweight division?

The ultimate aspect of mixed martial arts is that any fighter can win at any given moment. Saturday night’s “Ultimate Fighter Finale” between CB Dollaway and Amir Sadollah proved just that. Dollaway came out and took immediate control of the fight and looked to have a handle on the early action. Sadollah hardly had a chance to find himself on the offensive as Dollaway seemed ready to cruise to a victory and become the seventh fighter to be crowned the Ultimate Fighter.

Nevertheless, Dollaway’s fate changed in an instant when Sadollah caught him in an arm bar and forced the heavily favored Dollaway to tap. Just three minutes into the first round, Sadollah had sealed up season seven of the Ultimate Fighter. Dollaway paced across the octagon with disbelief written all over his face. In the world of mixed martial arts, even the heavily favored fighter is susceptible to a loss at any given moment.

It was truly a moment for exultation on Sadollah’s behalf as he walked away with a six figure contract to fight in the UFC. But the road ahead will not lie on a bed of roses. Sadollah will now have to contend with much stiffer competition in mixed martial arts’ most elite organization.

What lies ahead

All Sadollah needed to do was feast his upon the night’s main event to catch a glimpse of what the future has in store. Nearly two years ago to the day, Kendall Grove capped off season three of the Ultimate Fighter with a unanimous decision over Ed Herman. But since then, Grove has struggled to make a name for himself in the UFC.

Following Sadollah’s win, Grove used up all three rounds to win a split decision against an aged Evan Tanner. Grove peppered Tanner with jabs and added a few fierce elbows and knees throughout the fight. Yet, Grove could not finish off his slower, weaker and much older opponent.

The win was a must for Grove coming off two straight first round losses. The win also improved Grove’s post Ultimate Fighter record to a mere 3-2. Although Grove won the fight rather convincingly, the win didn’t convince anyone that he is a force to be reckoned with in the middleweight division. It is a future Grove probably didn’t foresee after he walked out of the octagon as the Ultimate Fighter two years ago.

Simply because Grove has had his share of struggles in the UFC does not mean Sadollah will follow the same path. So how can Sadollah truly expect to compete with fighters of a much higher caliber? The answer to that question came from inside the octagon. Sadollah’s victory of Dollaway is proof that any UFC fighter has a chance at any moment on the mat, especially the more technical fighters.

Granted, Sadollah probably doesn’t entertain visions of struggling to a split decision against an Evan Tanner type two years into the future. But only time will tell how his future will pan out. He is already armed with much more humility than Grove who displayed a bit of arrogance before, during and after his bout with Tanner.

Ultimate Fighters

On Saturday night, the UFC audience was able to witness back to back Ultimate Fighter champions of a very different nature. Yet, as different as every fighter is, they all share one common trait. Any one can fall victim to an arm bar at any given moment.

With so many ways to slip in a submission, it is extremely difficult to ever crown a true Ultimate Fighter. Nonetheless, other fighters will go on to follow in the footsteps of Grove and Sadollah as the Ultimate Fighter series continues. The names my change although the sport will remain the same. For it is not the ultimate fighter that makes the sport what it is, but rather the ultimate fight itself.

This year’s Ultimate Fighter finale will take place Saturday night in Las Vegas, although there will be a slight twist to the final bout. One of the fighters who earned the right to step into the octagon on Saturday night had that right pulled out from underneath of him. Finalist Jesse Taylor was issued his walking papers by UFC president Dana White after his recent meltdown in Sin City.

White dismissed Taylor after he was caught on video tape kicking out a window of a limousine and subsequently terrorizing women inside a Las Vegas hotel. Furthermore, he boasted to security that he was a UFC fighter, as if that simple fact would excuse his behavior. The move didn’t sit well with White.

A New Ultimate Fighter

As a result, Amir Sadollah will replace Taylor and Take on CB Dollaway for the right to be crowned the Ultimate Fighter during its seventh season. The move showed a lot of grit as well as the execution of class on White’s behalf. In the eyes of many, mma fighters are simply revered as nothing more than bruisers and thugs. And, in some circles, even mindless barbarians.

Taylor’s behavior only gave credence to those theories. Yet, White’s decision to nix Taylor has attempted to contradict those theories. Regardless of what transpires inside the octagon, White sent a clear cut message to the mass public as well as the rest of the fighters in the UFC. That message was simply that such behavior will not be tolerated.

In the world of professional sports, so many athletes tarnish their name and the name of their sport because of their behavior outside of the sport. In the recent past, former NFL quarterback Michael Vick fell victim to off the field problems and as a result, he now resides in an 8×11 cell.

But Taylor also wasn’t the only one to fall victim to the perils of Sin City. Las Vegas seduced the NFL’s “Pacman” Jones more than a year ago and prohibited him from pursuing an immediate future in football. While these may just be isolated incidents, each one grabs major headlines and sticks out in the forefront of most people’s minds. Despite most of the positives generated by these sports, these incidents batter them with a black eye.

Going, going, gone

Nowadays, the name of a home run king cannot be uttered with out the word steroid following that name. In a lesser publicized move, the EliteXC banned women’s fighter Carina Damm for one year after she tested positive for steroids. The move took place this past April and nullified a scheduled women’s bout on the past EliteXC television event. Without many women grabbing headlines in the sport, it was a bold move for the EliteXC to take such a drastic measure.

The WEC also got into the act and issued a six month medical suspension to Urijah Faber because of an injury to his hand that was sustained during his last bout with Jens Pulver. Now how many organizations would prohibit a player/fighter from participating because of a medical injury?

It was pretty much a known fact that former Green Bay Packer quarterback Brett Favre was on a steady diet of Demerol throughout his NFL career. Nonetheless, no NFL representative ever stepped in and even questioned the status of his health, nonetheless how many pills he was popping at halftime.

Although some may look on the sport of mixed martial arts as one of brutality, it is doing an excellent job of showing it is anything but that. White’s most recent move to ban Taylor is just the latest to show that the UFC wants to be recognized as an organization equipped with a conscious.

A lasting theory?

Now, would White had move such a move if Rampage Jackson had kicked out the window of a limousine? That question doesn’t have to be answered even though White gave the impression that such behavior will not be tolerated. And he evidenced the fact, showing that Taylor is not above the law.

A great deal of athletes in this day and age adhere to a mindset that would repute White’s actions. Lucrative contracts, millions of adoring fans and astronomical endorsement deals lead a lot of athletes to believe as though they can behave however they choose. That way of thinking may suffice in other organizations, but White has made a stand claiming that it will not be part of the UFC.

As the sport of mixed martial arts continues to grow, White is likely to get more opportunities to test his theory. For it is only a matter of time before someone decides to let the fame, fortune and perhaps even the luster of Las Vegas get the better of them. It will be then when the world will get to see if White can duplicate the same sentiment he expressed in his decision to dismiss Taylor.

As the popularity of mixed martial arts continues to heighten, new organizations are continuing to sprout up and take advantage of the growing interest that is spreading across the country. Some of those organizations will make admirable attempts at legitimizing the sport while others will fall drastically short.

Nevertheless, the bar has already been set by the UFC. And, like him or not, UFC President Dana White is one of the main reasons the sport has made it to where it is today.

Affliction is the latest organization to make an attempt at stepping into the cage against White and company. Affliction has managed to put together a mildly intriguing fight card for its first big event which will take place July 19th in Anaheim, California. Ticket prices for the event range from $50-$1000 and, according to Affliction sources, sales are already soaring.

The event will also be available on pay per-view for a mere $39.95. Inflating prices in the organization’s debut may be a bit risky as it now must deliver a night of quality mma action. Failure to do so would surely instill a negative feeling into the Affliction audience. It would also result in a small amount of repeat business.

Trading Punches

In an attempt to trade blows with the UFC, Affliction has signed a couple of fighters for its main event which it hopes will put on a quality performance. Former Pride heavyweight champion Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko will square off against former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia.

While Sylvia may not have been the most revered champion in UFC history, there is no denying the fact that he was the champion, even if it was just for a brief time. And Fedor’s reputation of being one of the world’s most dangerous heavyweights has not come courtesy of hype. With an overall record of 27-1, Fedor is a force to be reckoned with, regardless of which cage he steps into. Beyond that, there is not a whole lot to boast about on the fight card.

For the event, Affliction also grabbed some more fighters with UFC fights on their resume. There will be four other matches on the undercard. The mostly highly touted of them features Josh “The Baby Faced Assassin” Barnett (21-5) as he takes on Pedro “The Rock” Rizzo (16-7).

A Knockout Shot

The fight will come more than seven years after Rizzo knocked out Barnett while both were fighting in the UFC. That loss was Barnett’s only defeat in his seven-fight UFC history. However, Barnett has not fought inside the UFC octagon for over five years. Perhaps Affliction is just reaching into an older bag that was discarded long ago by Dana White. Rizzo has a formidable 9-5 record in the UFC with two of those losses coming courtesy of Randy Couture. Yet, since parting from the UFC at the tail end of 2003, Rizzo is a mere 2-2.

Perhaps a Barnett-Rizzo grudge match would have been more alluring if it took place five years ago. For the sake of Affliction, the pair hopes to recapture some of the swagger they carried with them just after the turn of the century. Yet, the Barnett-Rizzo match-up is just another reason why no organizations can compete with the UFC.

White is able to sign fighters when they are at the top of their game. Fighters masquerading in lesser known organizations may bring with them some impressive resumes, however resumes are nothing more than a history of the past. So while organizations like Affliction hope that the UFC fighters of yesterday will help them produce a half decent product, White is busy signing fighters who will usher in an exciting tomorrow.

Already Absorbing Blows

In light of Affliction’s latest event, its line of clothing is now banned from appearing inside the UFC octagon. It is also likely that Affliction fighters won’t get much consideration from White in the future if they attempt to maneuver their way back to the UFC. Making clothes is a lot different from promoting a fight. And now that Affliction has UFC for an opponent, it may turn out to be much more difficult than the organization originally perceived.

To counter the Affliction event, White is in the midst of scheduling a UFC fight card to coincide with the July 19th event. Furthermore, he has the leverage do inflict a significant amount of damage to the Affliction debut. While it is good for the sport to have fight leagues other than the UFC, none can compete on the same stage or expect the same following.

It has taken White a long time to build an elite organization and it is foolish for other organizations to think they can compete with the UFC after only a matter of months. For no matter which organization tries to trade blows with the UFC, the results will always be the same. For the most part, the fighters who win today in these new organizations will be simply be nothing more than the UFC victors of yesterday.