A few weeks ago, former UFC middleweight champion Evan Tanner posted a bulletin on myspace. He said he was rebuilding his career in the UFC and at the same time wants to change the way fighter sponsorship works. If you have ever watched a UFC fight, you see logos plastered all over the octagon , on the fighters shirts, shorts, hats, gi’s, and anywhere else they can fit a logo. It costs a lot of money these days to sponsor a fighter and the larger corporate companies have monopolized all advertising possibilities.

Evan wants to change this. He wants to give the casual mma fan who owns a small business a chance to get his name out there . Here is an letter I received from his people, written by Evan:

First, I’d like to thank everyone that has shown interest in being a part of the team. As I said in the announcement of Team Tanner, I’m very glad the sport is finally getting the recognition it deserves, but I feel it’s being corrupted by it’s new found fame. I feel the sport is being overly commercialized. I just signed a four fight contract after taking some time off. I’ll be fighting again early in 2008, and I don’t like the idea of stepping back into that game, begging companies for sponsorship, negotiating the size and placement of logos on my shirt and shorts, the plugs during interviews, and finally selling out to the highest bidder regardless of whether or not I use their product. That is the standard game most MMA athletes are obligated to play. It doesn’t seem to bother most of the guys, and that’s fine, but playing that game doesn’t suit me. I want to try something different. I want to do something that will bring back some of the original purity of MMA competition, the athlete and the fans. It’s because of the fans that this sport exists at the level it does today, I thought why not be sponsored by the fans? One would go from merely being a spectator in the audience to being a member of a team, and directly responsible for putting a fighter in the ring. What I’ve decided to do is turn my back on the large corporate sponsors and pay tribute to those who have been behind me from the beginning, to those who make it all possible, the fans. Team Tanner is my way of paying tribute to my fans that have supported me throughout the years, and to all MMA fans in general.
I have a deep and sincere appreciation for those who support me, and the sport of MMA. I have become friends with many. When I came up with the Team Tanner idea (still feel the name is silly, but what else am I going to use?), I didn’t at all envision it as a way to cash in on the fans, far from it. In reality by choosing this idealistic path, I’ll possibly be forfeiting hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars in the lifetime of my career. That is not what is important though. What is importing is being able to walk with pride knowing I am part of something real, part of something with true meaning, and at the same time giving the fans that chance too.
This is what I envision for Team Tanner. A team shirt for all members, custom designed for each fight. When I step in the Octagon, those who wish to show support can wear the shirt. I will walk to the Octagon in front of millions, wearing the exact same shirt paying my respect to the team members, the ones that made it happen.

Team Tanner T-shirt design for the fight early in 2008. This is the team member shirt. It says “Official Team Tanner Sponsor” on the lower right with my autograph. I will be wearing the same shirt into the ring, but mine will say “Sponsored by Team Tanner” on the reverse.
A Team Tanner website that will be exclusive to team members. The website will include a training journal, updates on upcoming fights, a weekly technique video, and a weekly behind the scenes video, training footage, etc, exclusive photo galleries, and a members only forum where team members can get together and exchange ideas. For now this is all set up on MySpace on under Team Tanner.
As I said, I don’t want to cash in on the fans, but money is necessary to cover training expenses. It’s extremely important to me that everyone who becomes involved is completely satisfied with their investment in the team. It is important that this is something that everyone can be proud to be a part of. The following is a list of the different sponsorship options available.

$50 contribution per fight

1. Access to exclusive Team Tanner myspace and any future online sites.
2. An autographed photo card personalized thanking you for joining Team Tanner.

$100 contribution per fight

1. Access to exclusive Team Tanner myspace and any future online sites.*
2. Celebration recognition (birthday, Christmas cards, etc.) from Evan.
3. Unique Team Tanner t-shirt designed for each fight.
4. An autographed photo card personalized thanking you for joining Team Tanner

$250 contribution per fight

1. Access to exclusive Team Tanner myspace and any future online sites.
2. Celebration recognition (birthday, Christmas cards, etc.) from Evan.
3. Unique Team Tanner t-shirt designed for each fight.
4. An autographed photo card personalized thanking you for joining Team Tanner
5. Team Tanner beanie
6. Personalized UFC poster

$500 contribution per fight

1. Access to exclusive Team Tanner myspace and any future online sites.
2. Celebration recognition (birthday, Christmas cards, etc.) from Evan.
3. Unique Team Tanner t-shirt designed for each fight.
4. An autographed photo card personalized thanking you for joining Team Tanner.
5. Team Tanner beanie.
6. 2 personalized UFC posters (great gift to give to friend who loves the UFC).
7. Team Tanner sweatshirt

$1000 contribution per fight

1. Access to exclusive Team Tanner myspace and any future online sites.
2. Celebration recognition (birthday, Christmas cards, etc.) from Evan.
3. Unique Team Tanner t-shirt designed for each fight.
4. An autographed photo card personalized thanking you for joining Team Tanner.
5. Team Tanner beanie.
6. 2 personalized UFC posters (great gift to give to friend who loves the UFC).
7. Team Tanner sweatshirt
8. Team Tanner fight shorts
9. Autographed DVD of Evan’s UFC fight

$2500 contribution per fight

All of the above, plus 3 days training with Evan in Las Vegas , room, board, and transportation provided. Live the life of a fighter mini camp. This is available for only two members at a time. Each participant will have a private room in a nice apt just blocks from the gym. They will receive free gym access, free personal training from Evan, free diet and training advice. Training will be based out of HardKnocks Muay There will be trips to other gyms in the area Xyience, Xtreme Couture, and others, where it’s possible to run into fighters like Randy Couture, Forrest Griffen, Frank Shamrock,etc. You never know who’s going to be in Vegas doing some training.

$4000 contribution per fight

All of the above and 2 tickets to the UFC event as special guests of Evan’s.

Top level
This level is reserved for those who want the full experience. It is available to only one person per fight. It can be combined with any of the other options available.

The member at this level will receive a cornerman pass and will accompany Evan and his trainers behind the scenes at the full event. This will include behind the scenes access to interviews, photo shoots, etc. This will also include behind the scenes access to the weigh-ins. On the night of the event, this member will accompany Evan and his trainers to the dressing room, be able to watch the warm up for the fight, and then walk out with Evan to the Octagon in front of tens of thousands in the venue and millions on TV.

This is a unique opportunity to get a first hand look at what goes on behind the scenes at a major UFC event, and a great opportunity to meet many of the top UFC fighters. Please contact Kyria at teamtanner@gmail.com to discuss availability.

Believe in the power of one,

Evan

The much-anticipated bout between rival welterweights Matt Hughes and Matt Serra has been removed from the UFC 79 card.  Matt Serra injured his back while training for the fight and was forced to withdraw.

“This is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do,” Serra said in a statement on UFC.com. “I’ve never had a back injury before; I could hardly get off of the MRI table. There is no way I can train through this, and I’m devastated, especially because this was such an important fight. I was looking forward to fighting Matt Hughes. All my training was going phenomenally until Monday. All I can do now is to get better and to fight again as soon as possible.”

The UFC has not announced whether or not they will keep Hughes on the card.  Hughes only has a few fights left on his contract so it will be interesting to see what organization does.

While Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva could carry the card on it’s own, both fighters are coming off of consecutive losses. Their fight has no real title implications. Serra’s injury leaves UFC 79 without a main event, and the second consecutive PPV where the UFC will not have a title fight. UFC 78, which took place in Newark NJ, featured an uneventful main event of Rashad Evans vs. Michael Bisping.

UFC 79 keeps getting better and better.

We have the welterweight championship grudge match between Matt Serra and Matt Hughes.

Former UFC 205 lbs. champion Chuck Liddell will take on former Pride 205 lbs. champion Wanderlei Silva.

TUF alumni Rich Clementi and Melvin Guillard will go toe to toe in a grudge match.

And now the UFC has just announced they signed “The African Assassin� Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou. He will square off against undefeated light heavyweight Lyoto “Ryoto� Machida on the same card.

“Sokoudjou is an explosive athlete with heavy hands and great judo who is coming off huge back-to-back knockout wins over two top ten guys in Ricardo Arona and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira,� said UFC President Dana White. “Bringing him in just makes the stacked 205-pound division even stronger, and there are endless great matchups for him here in the UFC.�

Sokoudjou vs. Machida is the icing on the cake. UFC 79 is not only the perfect way to end an exciting year of mixed martial arts, it will probably be the best fight card of the year.

I recently had the opportunity to ask UFC newcomer Tamdan “The Barn Cat� McCrory a few questions.

Tamdan McCrory is a 6’4� UFC welterweight. The Barn Cat is coming off a second round submission victory over UFC veteran Pete Spratt at UFC Fight Night in June. On Saturday November 17th, he is facing Pride vet Akihiro Gono at UFC 78:Validation.

The UFC lists his strengths as being well rounded, awkwardly strong, and having a deceiving appearance.

The Barn Cat Drawing by Kylie Russell – age 5

L: Why do they call you “The Barn Cat�?
T: There are these feral cats that live around my gym and they eat out of the dumpsters and kill field mice and stuff to survive. They’re all mangy and stuff. Well a friend of ours told
us that Barn Cats are “pound for pound the most ferocious animals alive. If you had a 1000 pound barn cat vs. 1000 pound bear, the barn cat would kill the bear. A barn cat could kill a shark in the water, that’s how ferocious they are”. So likewise after seeing my fighting style my coaches deemed me The Barn Cat.

L:Where do you train out of ?
T: I train with Team Bomb Squad in Central NY .

L: Do you train your stand up and your ground game in the same school?
T: Yeah – I go to some other school and train occasionally. I go to Tai Kai in Syracuse . The Jiu-Jitsu guy that I work with, his name is Andrew Calendrelli, he is out of Connecticut. I go there to work some stuff with him. He has his own school and is a Renzo Gracie brown belt.

L: Did you start training at different schools after you got the call from the UFC or is it something you’ve always done?
T: Yeah I started doing that once I got into the UFC. It was just getting to the point where I needed bigger and better people to push me I’ve been going outside what I’m used to just to get new training partners so I can always be fresh and keep improving.

L: How old were you when you started training?
T: I was 19

L: How did the UFC first get in touch with you to fight Pete Spratt?
T: We have a friend who manages Joe Lauzon. He talked to Joe or whatever and I guess they had seen me. I had put in a tape for the ultimate fighter for the show that’s on right now, but I was too young to be on it. They had known about me and knew what I was doing. We got into talks with them and they were looking for an opponent for Pete Spratt and luckily they threw a contract at me and the rest is history.

L: How old are you right now?
T: I turn 21 on Monday (11/12/2007)

L: Are you younger then Dan Lauzon or is he still the youngest fighter in the UFC?
T: He is the youngest in the UFC but I think I am the youngest active right now.

L: When you fought Pete Spratt did you suffer from the “Octagon Jitters� at all?
T: No, not really. The only thing is that when I was backstage it was really cold so I was trying to warm up and get ready but I kept cooling down. There wasn’t any entrance music or anything; you kind of just walked down. It wasn’t nervous in the sense of UFC jitters it was just different. It wasn’t like my other fights. It was an undercard of an Ultimate Fight Night.

L: Do you get walk in music this time?
T: I hope so, that’s what they told me.

L: Did you take anything away from the Spratt fight that you are going to take into the Gono fight?
T: I got my first fight out of the way so I know what the pressure is going to be like. I know how hard that canvas is because it felt harder then anything I’ve ever fought on. It’s also very slick so you have to try to get traction.

L: Is that because of the logo’s they put on the mat?
T: The logos are where your feet stick, so if you are on the straight canvas you end up slipping.

L: Have you worked with your coaches to set up a specific game plan in the Akihiro Gono fight?
T: Yeah.

L: Are you concerned with the experience he has?
T: Well it hasn’t worked out for anyone else that I’ve fought so not really too concerned. I just plan on going out there and doing what I do.

Tamdan McCrory is fighting Akihiro Gono at UFC 78: Validation. The event takes place from The Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Tickets can be purchased here

Check out Tamdan’s website here

So the UFC has not held an event in the northeast since UFC 55: Fury at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. The card was sub par then, and the event took place on a Friday. Every UFC pay per view is on a Saturday – this was clearly a rush job.

Over two years later, the UFC is finally returning to the tri-state area. UFC 78: Validation will be held from the Prudential Center in Newark New Jersey.

After two long years, the UFC decides to grace us with a main event featuring Michael “The Count� Bisping and “Sugar� Rashad Evans.

Yes, I said main event.

The UFC is promoting this fight as the first time two winners from The Ultimate Fighter reality show will square off against one another. Both fighters are also undefeated.

There are no title implications in this fight. This is not a fight fans talked about seeing and both fighters are coming off less then impressive performances.

Up until recently, this match made no sense as a main event. The UFC gave both fighters their own blog that they post on weekly. Both fighters have published harsh words about one another and now the fight has a slight dynamic to it.

Last week Rashad Evans took some pot shots at Bisping:

“On November 17th, you can look forward to staring across the ring at somebody who’s gonna bring immense pressure, something you’ve never felt before. We’re gonna stand and just got toe to toe and battle it out. Believe me, you’ve never felt this before. You probably went to camp with Rampage and Rampage never gave it to you like I’m gonna give it to you. If you got jumped by ten people, I think your ass whipping would be less than what I’m gonna give you on November 17th.â€?

Bisping countered with some humorous shots of his own:

” What’s hilarious is that you are throwing all these threats around as if you expect anyone to take them seriously. Sorry, we’ve heard it all before, Rashad. We heard it ever since you were on TUF 2, that this time you’re gonna go all out, this time you are going to bring it, this time you will put all this pressure on, this time you’ll push yourself etc.

We especially heard it before your fight with Tito Ortiz. That’s the immense pressure you are bringing to our fight? This is the same smack talk you said last time. It was complete bollocks then and I think it is complete bollocks now.

I see more aggression from my girlfriend when she hits the January sales than you showed in the Tito fight.

Punish me for three rounds? You’ve punished the fans enough with your lay and pray antics for 15 minutes at a time. Surely they’ve suffered enough?�

I’ll wait for Rashad’s rebuttal before handing in my official decision, but on the judges scorecards I have the verbal battle won 29-28 – Bisping.

Hopefully this documented animosity follows both fighters into the cage on November 17th.

As I wrote yesterday, BJ Penn will square off against Joe Stevenson at UFC 80 for the interim lightweight title.

The muscle shark is not pleased with this decision:

“To be honest, even an interim title doesn’t make me too happy,� Sherk said. “This belt hasn’t been taken away from me, it’s still my belt. If I get cleared from my hearing to fight, I’m eligible to fight right now, so I don’t think that the idea of an interim title… it doesn’t make me too happy. I’ll just have to fight whoever wins that fight.

“If somebody wants to wrap that belt around their waist and call themselves champion, I think it should be me. Otherwise, it’s just a little fake belt.�

Sean Sherk is scheduled to appear in front of the California State Athletic Commission on November 13th in the latest installment of his steroid allegation saga. Sherk not only wants the suspension and fine dropped, he also wants a clean slate on his fighter’s license.

“I’m looking to get this whole thing vindicated,� he said. “I want this overturned. I didn’t take Nandrolone, and it’s something I don’t want on my record. A reduction in my sentence isn’t going to be enough for me, so I’m looking to get this thing turned over all together.�

Fedor Emelianenko won’t fight on New Years Eve after all.

MMA fans want to see Fedor fight and they want to see him fight soon. Fedor’s Japanese fans have been flooding Fedor with fan mail asking if he will fight on New Years Eve, a 4-year tradition for the former Pride heavyweight champion.

On November 3rd, Fedor Emelianenko addressed his fight fans in an open letter published on www.mixfight.ru, the flagship website of the organization he will fight for.

It’s always a pleasure to receive letters from my fans, especially when it comes to letters from my fans from Japan. For many years, we spent the New Years Eve together, celebrating my victories. They’ve always inspired me through the toughest moments and hardest bouts of my entire career. In recent years, I thought a lot about the proverb saying “New Year’s Eve defines the whole coming year”.

Being in that country is a holiday in itself. We experienced it every year and now my team and I, personally, miss its amazing culture, rich history, and wonderful traditions.

However, if you wish something really bad you don’t give up half way through; you must keep working towards your goal. I contacted M-1 Global management and received their complete support in my desire to continue the tradition of fighting in Japan on New Year’s Eve.

Now it all depends on whether it will be possible to organize an event of a caliber all of us got used to. That’s why I’m addressing you, dear MMA fans. M-1 Global and I will do our best to give you one more show taking place in Japan on this New Year’s Eve. I’ll be extremely happy if our mutual wishes come true.

Yours faithfully,
Fedor Emelianenko.

MMA fans will not get there wish, however.

“No. It’s [the fight] not going to happen,� said M-1’s president and CEO, Monte Cox, of the proposed fight.

“There was an offer. We looked at it. We tried to see if it was possible, but in the end, there just wasn’t enough time to pull it off. It wasn’t a bad idea. It was kind of planned to be a sort of goodbye to Pride fans for Fedor.�

Cox stated that Fedor’s first fight will probably be in February.

“We’re tentatively thinking February (for M-1’s first fight card and Emelianenko’s next fight). Obviously things can change, but that’s the plan,� said Cox.

It looks like Fedor fans will have to have patience for at least two more months. Let’s hope when he does get back in the ring he will fight a worthy opponent, or at least one in his weight class.

After defeating against Hermes Franca in Sacramento, California, current UFC lightweight champion Sean Sherk tested positive for having nandrolone metabolites in his system. The California State Athletic Commission suspended him a year and fined him $2,500.

Sherk has vehemently denied using steroids, however. He hired Howard Jacobs, a well-known lawyer who has appealed doping cases for athletes such as track star Marion Jones and cyclists Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton, to appeal his suspension.

Sherk says he has spent $20,000 on his defense and, due to his suspension by the CSAC, has missed a championship defense originally scheduled to take place against B.J. Penn on November 17 in Newark, N.J.

There have been many setbacks in the case and there has been a lot of criticism with the way the CSAC has handled it.

Dana White stated on Friday that he would not strip Sean Sherk of the lightweight title. White claims that the unprofessional conduct of the CSAC prompted the decision and that he was fed up with the handling of the Sherk steroid case.

While this debacle of a steroid argument is sorted out, the UFC needs to name an interim lightweight champion.

Enter “The Prodigy� BJ Penn and Joe “Daddy� Stevenson.

“BJ Penn and Joe Stevenson are two of the top lightweights in the world,� said Dana White, UFC President. “Penn is the former world welterweight champion and Stevenson is unbeaten in the UFC as a lightweight. Both of these guys are known for their ground games and their will to win, so not only will it be a great fight, but the winner will become the interim world lightweight champion.�

The two fighters will face off at UFC 80: Rapid Fire which will take place at the Metro Arena in Newcastle, England.

If Sherk is found innocent of the steroid charges, he will face the winner of the Penn/Stevenson fight to unify the lightweight titles.

Brock Lesnar is set to debut at UFC 81. The bout will be held at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada on the eve of Super Bowl XLII.

It was announced yesterday that Lesnar’s first opponent was agreed upon and would be a high profile name, but that it would not be Brad Imes, Ken Shamrock or Heath Herring.

Rumors were circling that Lesnar’s first opponent would be the sidelined Andre Arlosvki, but it was announced earlier today that former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir will get first crack at the former WWE heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar.

Frank Mir is most famously known for defeating Tim Sylvia for the vacant UFC Heavyweight Title at UFC 48 on June 19, 2004. Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight at 50 seconds into the first round when Mir applied a brutal armbar that snapped Sylvia’s right forearm. With the TKO win, Mir became the new UFC Heavyweight Champion.

If you look closely, you can see Sylvia’s forearm bone protruding outward

In September of 2004, Mir was knocked off his motorcycle by a car. The accident caused a break in Mir’s femur bone and tore all the ligaments in his knee.

After undergoing major surgery on his knee, Mir returned to the octagon. He has had ups and downs, going 2-2 since his return. In his last fight, Mir submitted Antoni Hardonk in 77 seconds.

Lesnar was recently asked if he was getting in over his head by asking for high profile fighters right off the bat. He stated:

“This is very serious for me. People don’t really understand that yes, I was a pro wrestler. But I was also an NCAA champion and I’ve been training MMA for almost two years now. It’s no different than these other guys who have been training jiu-jitsu for 10 years and decide to get in the fight game. I was an amateur wrester for 18 years. Why wouldn’t I qualify for this?�

Lesnar is looking to make an impression in the UFC. There is no doubt that he is going to bring everything he has when he faces Frank Mir in February. Let’s hope that Mir comes into this fight in the better shape then he has since returning from injury in February of 2006.