We've been handing out our half-year MMA awards, so here's my take on the biggest upset of the last six months.
As is often the case in MMA, there were plenty of upsets to choose from. But at the end of the day, I had to go with Joe Warren defeating Kid Yamamoto via split decision at Dream.9 on May 26 (part one of the fight is above; part two is here.)
After UFC 99, I wrote that Cain Velasquez looks like a future UFC heavyweight champion. I've heard some pushback on that from people who take a contrary view, saying Velasquez didn't look very good in the stand-up, and that he ate some hard punches from Cheick Kongo at the start of all three rounds of their fight.
I agree that Velasquez needs to work on his stand-up, and he definitely needs to learn better head movement so he doesn't get punched right on the button the way he did against Kongo. But I also think Velasquez showed a lot of heart in taking those punches from Kongo and managing to quickly take him down in all three rounds, and I think people are too quick to dismiss how impressive it is to win all three rounds against Kongo: In nine previous UFC fights, Kongo was 7-2, and the two losses were by split decision. No one has ever dominated Kongo in the Octagon the way Velasquez did. And that's why Velasquez is on my list of the Top 10 heavyweights in MMA, which is below.
Is Brett Rogers really one of the 10 best heavyweights in mixed martial arts? It still sounds crazy to say it, but really: After he destroyed Andrei Arlovski in just 22 seconds, running his record to a perfect 10-0 with nine first-round stoppages, how can I deny him?
As a relatively new promoter in the mixed martial arts world, Strikeforce has two objectives during events. First of all, it hopes for excitement. Second, it hopes to create new stars.
Both goals were reached during Saturday night's card on Strikeforce.
The last time we saw Andrei Arlovski, he was picking apart the best MMA fighter in the world, Fedor Emelianenko. Unfortunately, an ill-timed flying knee proved to be his undoing, as after dominating Fedor for the first three minutes of the bout, he was knocked out cold.
Since then, Arlovski has talked about finally making his professional boxing debut, so it caught most MMA fans by surprised when news broke that he would be facing the undefeated Brett Rogers on the June 6 Strikeforce show.
FanHouse spoke to Arlovski about gearing up for Rogers on short notice and his quest to avenge his loss to Fedor. The full interview is below.
Andrei Arlovski was beating Fedor Emelianenko through the first three minutes of their fight in January at Affliction: Day of Reckoning. But after three minutes and 14 seconds, Arlovski was unconscious on the canvas, having tried a wild flying knee that landed his face on the business end of Fedor's fist.
So as Arlovski prepares for his first fight since facing Fedor, against Brett Rogers on the June 6 Strikeforce card, he says he has learned a very simple and very valuable lesson about the importance of patience in MMA.
"Don't rush," Arlovski said when asked on HDNet's Inside MMA what he has learned from losing to Fedor. "Every time I've had a very important fight for me I did something stupid and paid for it. So I have to be more patient and focused."
News and notes from around the world of mixed martial arts:
* A heavyweight bout between Tim Sylvia and Paul Buentello has been penciled in for "Affliction: Trilogy," a source close to Sylvia informed Fanhouse on Friday. A member of Buentello's camp told FanHouse that he already signed the bout agreement and Sylvia will be doing the same shortly. Sylvia was last seen losing in 36 seconds via rear naked choke to Fedor Emelianenko at the first Affliction event last July. Meanwhile, since losing the Strikeforce heavyweight title to Alistair Overeem in November 2007, Buentello has won his last two fights in a row.
Andrei Arlovski fell into the June 6 Strikeforce card only after champion Alistair Overeem was forced to pull out of a proposed title fight with Brett Rogers due to a hand infection, and apparently, Arlovski's stay with the San Jose, Calif.,-based organization could extend past one fight.
According to Strikeforce director of communications Mike Afromowitz, the winner of the Arlovski-Rogers bout could be next in line for a crack at Overeem's belt.
Afromowitz, however, did caution any excitement, noting that a winner vs. Overeem fight was no certainty because of the many factors in play, including Overeem's recovery time, Arlovski's contract situation and the ever-present possibility of fight-sustained injuries hurting the timeline.
Affliction's third event, featuring a main event of Fedor Emelianenko vs. Josh Barnett and taking place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Aug. 1, should be officially announced within days, a source with knowledge of the situation told FanHouse.
Though neither Emelianenko or Barnett has signed official bout agreements, they have both verbally accepted the matchup, according to the source.
Earlier this week, Affliction President Tom Atencio told FanHouse he would not be able to confirm any details until contracts were officially signed.
After UFC 99, I wrote that Cain Velasquez looks like a future UFC heavyweight champion. I've heard some pushback on that from people who take a contrary view, saying Velasquez didn't look very good in the stand-up, and that he ate some hard punches from Cheick Kongo at the start of all three rounds of their fight.
As a relatively new promoter in the mixed martial arts world, Strikeforce has two objectives during events. First of all, it hopes for excitement. Second, it hopes to create new stars.
The last time we saw Andrei Arlovski, he was picking apart the best MMA fighter in the world, Fedor Emelianenko. Unfortunately, an ill-timed flying knee proved to be his undoing, as after dominating Fedor for the first three minutes of the bout, he was knocked out cold. 
Andrei Arlovski was beating Fedor Emelianenko through the first three minutes of their fight in January at Affliction: Day of Reckoning. But after three minutes and 14 seconds, Arlovski was unconscious on the canvas, having tried a wild flying knee that landed his face on the business end of Fedor's fist.
Andrei Arlovski fell into the June 6 Strikeforce card only after champion Alistair Overeem was forced to pull out of a proposed title fight with Brett Rogers due to a hand infection, and apparently, Arlovski's stay with the San Jose, Calif.,-based organization could extend past one fight. 
Affliction's third event, featuring a main event of Fedor Emelianenko vs. Josh Barnett and taking place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif., on Aug. 1, should be officially announced within days, a source with knowledge of the situation told FanHouse.
