Do Chicks Really Dig Cauliflower Ears?

Today's New York Times notes how the popularity of mixed martial arts has created a new fashionable trend; the cauliflower ear.

Many MMA practitioners, including kids, look up to elite fighters like B.J. Penn and Randy Couture, and admire the toughness that's reflected from their ears. Some fighters consider the cauliflower ear a badge of honor and prevent treatment in favor of nurturing the deformity.

Others consider it a rite of passage.

"It's man's ear" said Nisar Loynab, 15, who trains at Capital Jiu-Jitsu in Alexandria, Va. "When you get cauliflower, you're really a man."

But can you pick up girls if you're sporting a cauliflower ear?

"It's definitely part of the culture," said Dr. John H. Park, a physical therapist in Rockville, Md., who specializes in treating M.M.A. participants. They say, 'Chicks dig that stuff because they know you're a fighter.'"

Something to consider if you're a struggling pick up artist.

And for the rest who have a cauliflower ear fetish, here are a couple of videos devoted to the subject:

Cauliflower Ear Segment on Inside the UFC.


How to Fix a Cauliflower Ear.

M.M.A.'s Macho Badge of Honor - Deformed Ears (NY Times)

Brutal Head Kick Video!

Rory Markham knocks out Brodie Farber with a fight ending head kick at Ultimate Fight Night 14.

Randy Couture Book Signing, Times Square New York City

The first time I met MMA legend, Randy "The Natural" Couture was during a sponsor promotion at a GNC store in Herald Square, NY just a couple of years ago. It was just after he had retired. At the time, MMA was starting to make a buzz in the mainstream, but not enough to generate a big turnout at his GNC appearance. It was great for me and my friends because we took a couple of pictures and engaged in some small talk and didn't have to wait in line, go through any kind of security or even purchase a product. It seemed more personal and it was very nice.

Fast forward to today, as mixed martial arts is more mainstream than ever. The UFC airs on Spike TV, EliteXC is airing events on CBS, Strikeforce on NBC and Affliction is coming off a successful debut event. Within that time, Randy briefly came out of retirement and beat two tough and much younger fighters in Tim Sylvia and Gabriel Gonzaga. Then last October, he quit the UFC. During his fighting hiatus, he has written a book, Becoming the Natural: My Life In and Out of the Cage,which was just released on July 22nd. This past Monday, he started his book signing tour at the Virgin Megastore in Times Square, New York and I was going to be there.

This time it was not like the GNC appearance. There was a table, some posters and banners from the book cover. There was a line of people, Virgin employees checked everyone's receipts and opened our books to the page where he was to sign. It's 6:00pm and in walks Randy with a small entourage that included his wife Kim, a very serious security guard and a camera man who was recording the entire book signing event.

I finally made it up to the table and greeted "The Natural" with a firm handshake. He looked very dapper in his long sleeved striped shirt and dark tan. He smiled, signed my book and put his arm around my waist as we posed for a picture. I wished him luck in his fighting and movie career and asked him to kick Fedor's butt if he ever got the chance.

It was great to meet one of my favorite fighters for a second time. Even though the occasion was more formal than the first time, he was as friendly and gracious as he was just a couple of years back.

Outrageous Videos of MMA Fighters Going on Blind Dates

Tim Sylvia on Blind Date (UFC)
Uploaded by mma-tv

Josh Thomson on Blind Date (UFC)
Uploaded by mma-tv

Tiki Ghosn on Blind Date (UFC)
Uploaded by mma-tv

Pete Spratt on Blind Date (UFC)
Uploaded by mma-tv

The Best of the Worse of Jesse Taylor

JT Money rockt das Haus!

Jesse Taylor featured on The Soup

Andrei Arlovski Asks Tim Sylvia, 'How Taste My Pee Pee'?

Former UFC Heavyweight Champion, Andrei Arlovski is not happy that Tim Sylvia took his belt a couple of years ago, but apparently the big bully also took Arlovski's girlfriend, model Patrycja Mikula. The video is less than 3 minutes long and toward the end of the interview, Arlovski is asked to share his thoughts about Tim Sylvia dating his ex.

Torn Between UFC and Affliction MMA Shows

Tomorrow night, there will be two mixed martial arts events and I don’t know which one I should watch live and which I should tape and watch later. Perhaps a list of the pros and cons will help me decide. Let’s see…

I apologize if there's a huge gap of white space. Scroll down to see the table. Not sure what I did wrong. :(

UFC Fight Night 14	Affliction: Banned
Airing free on Spike TV	Airing on PPV for $39.99
Begins at 10:00 PM EST	Begins at 9:00 PM EST
Anderson Silva, the best pound-for-pound fighter, debuts as Light Heavyweight	Fedor Emelianenko, arguably the greatest mixed martial arts fighter
With the exception of Anderson Silva and Frankie Edgar, it’s a weak card.	Strong card that includes Andrei Arlovski, Pedro Rizzo, and Josh Barnett
Commercial interruption (if taped, can fast-forward through them)	No commercial interruption
Familiar with their shows so I’ll know what to expect.	Debut event adds to my curiosity.
No musical performances or dancing cheerleaders – pure MMA	Live performance by Megadeth
Joe Rogan’s in-depth knowledge of the sport and his impeccable commentating skills.	Former MMA referee, and UFC staple, “Big” John McCarthy will be joined by Jay Glazer and Frank Trigg as the event’s color commentators
Bruce Buffer	Michael Buffer

'Rampage' Jackson Arrested at Gunpoint Plus SpongeBob SquarePants

I hope it's a case of faulty brakes. Hmm.


Photos of the arrest

Photos of UFC and Affliction Billboards in Times Square, NYC

I was hanging out in Times Square last Saturday and took a few snapshots of the UFC and Affliction billboards promoting their upcoming shows. The UFC 87 billboard is on 45th Street & Broadway.

The Affliction billboard is on 49th Street & Broadway. The billboard wraps around the building, so Fedor is facing Broadway and Tim Sylvia is facing 49th Street. Click each photo for a larger view.

MMA Photo of the Day: Genki Sudo vs. Royler Gracie

Genki Sudo offers a solemn bow to his befallen opponent, Royler Gracie; K-1 MMA ROMANEX event, May 22, 2004.

Rear Naked Blokes, First Ever Gay Cage Fight Held In Arkansas

A cage fighting event in Arkansas called "Blue Collar Brawlin" took place on June 5th in which fighters, instead of kicking and punching, decided to mount and give each other a reach around.

Excerpt from the Huffington Post's website:

"Crowds in Arkansas came for the lure of cage fighting and $1 beer, but police say what they got instead was men ripping each others' clothes off and kissing ... a stunt suspected of being orchestrated by Sacha Baron Cohen of "Borat" fame."

Cohen retired Borat and Ali G, characters from his comedic repertoire, but there's one ace up his sleeve; Bruno.

Bruno, played by Cohen, is an Austrian fashion reporter who's obnoxiously flamboyant and über gay. Filming for the movie based on the Bruno character is currently in production.

What's unique about Cohen's characters are the real-life, unscripted confrontations with unwitting people. His winning formula is having Bruno frolic where bigots and homophobes are in full force; the Southern United States, the Bible Belt, where Evangelical conservatism is a way of life.

Look for this movie in 2009. In the meantime, here's a taste of Bruno learning the finer points of wrestling from an unsuspecting college wrestling team.


Link: Bruno's Prank: Arkansas Cage Fights Turn Gay, Crowd Goes Crazy

Gina Carano Roughs Up Little Old Lady on National Television

The face of female mixed martial arts, Gina Carano, also known as "Crush" on NBC's American Gladiators, used her incredible human strength to body slam, flip and power-bomb a 52 year old grandmother.

Watch Sexy UFC Ring Card Girl, Edith Labelle's 'Revealing' Photo Shoot

Want more Edith? Here's a slideshow (NSFW)

30 Seconds of Pure UFC Brutality

This one is brief, cause I know you bore easily, so here's an old school beat down featuring Gary 'Big Daddy' Goodridge vs. Paul Herrera at UFC 8. Trust me, you'll never see this type of domination in the UFC...ever again.

Did Forrest Griffin Really Defeat Quinton Jackson?

Forrest Griffin's first professional MMA fight was against Dan 'The Beast' Severn. Forrest lost the fight, but earned $250 for his efforts. This past Saturday, Forrest defeated Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson and won the coveted UFC light heavyweight title. Forrest made $310,000 which includes $60,000 in "Fight of the Night" bonus money.

Some fans are outraged by the unanimous decision favoring Forrest, but Rampage admitted during the post fight interview, "He jacked my leg up. I tried to pretend, but I ain't that good at acting....he just whooped my ass."

Jackson did change his tune during the post fight press conference, saying: "...I felt like I won the fight." Quinton also said, "...he threw me a whammy, he hurt my leg, that's what messed me up."

Juanito Ibarra, Quinton's coach, who said he'd retire should Forrest win, is creating a big stink about the decision and demanding an immediate rematch. Perhaps he's just not ready to retire, but he does make a valid point. How did two judges give Forrest a 10-9 score for the first round when he got knocked down?

...Forrest kicked the outside of the left knee. The result was instant.

Quinton knocked down Forrest in the first round, but Forrest defended intelligently by pulling guard. Well fought, sure, but to give Forrest a 10-9 for the first round is dubious at best.

However, Quinton didn't have an answer for Forrest's leg kicks and it made all the difference.

Forrest Griffin landed a beautiful leg kick early in the second round. It was beautiful as it was damaging. And none of this kicking to the meaty part of the thigh either. For an opponent to hurt from such kicks requires a cumulative effort. It also takes too damn long.

Instead Forrest kicked the outside of the left knee. The result was instant. Quinton hurt and hobbled about for several seconds before clinching. The kick was thrown with such precision and power that its momentum continued onto Jackson, who spun halfway around in dance-like fashion.

It was Jackson's lead leg that was taken out of the equation. No lead leg = no power punch. It's hard to say whether Jackson's left knee fully recovered in the later rounds. He walked gingerly out of the octagon.

But what's done is done and Forrest is the new champ.

It was a great fight with a controversial ending. I'd say that's the perfect formula for a rematch.

Photos by Sherdog.com

Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson Quotes