Chicks Heart Fights

I like using Latin in my blogging. It makes my four years of studying the language in high school completely worthwhile.

- Cage Potato has an excellent interview with Forrest Griffin, in which he discusses coaching TUF, preparing for this weekend, and Rampage’s scowl.

-  The Missouri peeps are having a send-off for Ben Askren at the Peachtree Convention Center in Columbia on July 16 at noon. Tickets are $40 a person, or $250 for a table of ten. Tickets are going mighty quickly, so if you want to go, contact Brian Smith at 573-882-0735. All proceeds benefit the Missouri Wrestling Foundation. If you can’t go but you’d like to send Ben good wishes, send them to Brian at smithbq@missouri.edu.

-  Tennesse: good. Delaware: bad.

-  NBC has a profile of Greco-Roman coach Steve Fraser. For the record, 38 days until the Olympics begin. WOOT.

I coach at a high school, and I have an 18-year-old niece. These kids are fantastic, but on the whole, they can be idiots. I think any parents of teenagers will agree with me on that.

Jake Deitchler is not your typical 18-year-old.

The youngest member of the Olympic wrestling team is grounded and focused. He knows the history of wrestling, and takes the time to learn from the titans of the sport. While in New York with the Olympic wrestling team, he spent time with Lee Kemp, discussing sports psychology and the pressures of being an Olympian.

Of course, he is still an 18-year-old kid. When naming the other Olympians he’d like to meet , he skipped right over Kobe and LeBron, and went straight to gymnast, Nastia Liukin. Nastia, you could do far worse than someone who you can find in the pages of Sports Illustrated, who graduated early from high school and who will be a Minnesota Gopher after the Olympics.

• Members of the US wrestling team, Ben Askren, Clarissa Chun, Marcie Van Dusen, Randi Miller and Ali Bernard, were treated to a day of pampering at Tranquility Spa in New Jersey . You may notice that Ben’s hair was straightened. Let me tell you - as the owner of some seriously curly hair, like Ben, I can assure you, it is not easy to straighten hair like that.
• Two different athletes are selling shirts to help send their families to Beijing. Buy Ben’s “Put the Chin in China” shirt at Wrestling Central, and from the Hawkeye newsletter: For $20, you can get the new “Schwab. Bring on the World” t-shirt. Sizes range from Youth Medium to Adult XX Large. If you are interested in purchasing a shirt, please contact Doug’s fiancee, Allyson by e-mail at allyson-campbell@uiowa.edu.
• Kim Couture fought her first fight this past weekend, and got her jaw broken. BFD. Fighters get their jaws broken all the time. It’s not especially pretty, but it’s what she chose to do. Ben Fowlkes at Cage Potato examines why so many people were up in arms about the bloody pictures of Kim after the fight.
• Greco Roman Olympian Brad Vering has a Q&A on NBC Olympics. Apparently, Brad likes to go fishing. Funny enough, so do I! Call me, Brad!

Because I was out fighting cancer, I was not able to watch the TUF finale live. I have finally caught up with the TUF matches and news - I will have observations on the Diego/Luigi and Grove/Tanner fights tomorrow.

First off, the Credeur/Yarborough fight was scratched just minutes before it was set to begin. Credeur’s preliminary drug test showed Adderall, a drug usually associated with hyperactive children. It can increase the likelihood of cardiac issues, according to Keith Kizer, of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

With the Riddle/Dante fight, I don’t know if Riddle was that good, or Rivera was that good. That being said, if Dana White was giving out a most improved award, Riddle would win it, hands down. He has gone from an raw fighter to an up and coming star. He seems hungry to train and learn MMA, and that will serve him well.

The only thing different between the two Amir/C.B. fights was when C.B. submitted. C.B. will have a bright future in the UFC. Working with Arizona Combat Sports, his jiu-jitsu will improve, and he will be a more well-rounded fighter. What can be said about Amir, except, how fun is he? A funny self-deprecating, well-rounded fighter who can take serious punishment is a huge asset to the UFC. I can’t wait to see what he does next.

Cubs lost, and Carlos Zambrano has shoulder discomfort. Not good. Of course, we’re in for the most shocking TUF EVA! tonight, so that’s a good thing. Also good is that the blister I sustained from walking the strip in Vegas is finally healing. Onto the show:

Continue Reading »

Wrestlers usually let their actions speak for themselves. They’re not likely to call press conferences, or release news to the media, or even make cases for themselves in matters such as wild card berths and seeding. For this reason, the way a wrestler signals his retirement is both powerful and befitting of the sport. At the Olympic Trials, several wrestlers sat down after their last match, untied their shoes, and walked off in their socks. Each time this was done, the crowd gave the wrestler a standing ovation, and tears welled up in my eyes. The wrestlers - Stephan Abas, Harry Lester, Jeff Funicello to name a few - usually just gave a humble wave and put their head down as they headed off the mat. The humility of this action, and the support of the wrestling community, are just two of the reasons why the wrestling family is so special.

I greatly apologize for not posting over the weekend. Right now, I am sitting in the Phoenix airport, eternally grateful for their free wi-fi. The schedule did not allow me as much time as I thought it would, but here is complete coverage from the Mat . The team that was made is very different from the team I thought we would have, but it’s a very good team. Here are my random observations from watching the Trials over the past few days.

• The rules stink. Plain old stink. They don’t reward the wrestler who pushes the pace and tries to create scoring opportunities. Even more egregiously, the rules reward luck. Coin flips decided far too many matches. What is wrong with letting wrestlers wrestle to decide the winner of a match? Isn’t that the point?
• Ben Askren is the first wrestling Olympian from the University of Missouri. I held back tears as the seconds ticked away in Ben’s second match, as I was a Tiger for a little bit of the pre-Brian Smith era. I can’t believe I’m going to get to watch one of my own in the Olympics.
• There was music played for the duration of the tournament, and the song choices were bizarre. With the exception of Rob Koll, who exactly gets pumped up to wrestle by listening to “Dancing Queen?” They also clearly did not vet the music before playing it. When I heard the beginning beats of “Closer,” by Nine Inch Nails, I myself nearly ran down to the announcer’s table to get the song turned off before Trent Reznor screamed “I wanna f### you like an animal!” Thankfully, someone else realized the error and turned that song off.
• The addition of Judo was fantastic. I learned more about a sport I had not seen before, and the Judo fans were clearly happy to be joined by the large wrestling contingent.
• Cary Kolat was one of my favorite wrestlers to watch. His return to the national scene has been a welcome one, and I hope he keeps at it.
• Someone please correct me if I’m wrong, but Sunday saw no wrestlers leave their shoes on the mat. Many wrestlers announced their retirement on Saturday, including, most shockingly in my opinion. Harry Lester. His loss to Jake Deicthler was a huge upset, and an amazing win for the 18 year old Deicthler, but I never would have guessed that this would be the last we would see of Lester. We will miss you, Harry!
• Is it me, or does T.C. Dantzler have a head wound in every match?
• One of the best moments of the weekend was when the 1980 Olympic team was honored. Regardless of the politics, it’s a shame that these men didn’t have a chance to take the mat that year. Granted, some of them had opportunities in other Games, but they were in the minority. Like many other fans, I appreciated having the opportunity to give them a round of applause.
• As usual, the wrestling world showed how we are a true family this weekend. I made new friends , reconnected with old ones, shared cabs with tons of random cauliflower-eared folk and was reminded why I love this sport so much.
• Two celebrities in the crowd: Dan Henderson and Ashton Kutcher
• Finally, as of today, Mike Zadick is FS 60 kg Trials champion. I have heard that he may receive a wildcard and get to compete in the Olympics. Keep your fingers crossed!

That’s all for now. I promise to have much, much more after I have had more than 45 minutes of sleep. It is so true that time has no meaning in Las Vegas!

Last year’s Greco-Roman team won the World Championship on the backs of Dremiel Byers, Brad Vering and Harry Lester. Though the team has gone through some setbacks, they have the talent and the opportunity to come home from Beijing with some serious hardware. Of course, they have to make the team first. Continue Reading »

Good news: Cubs are winning. Bad news: Alfonso Soriano has a fracture in his hand. Good news: I’m going to Vegas this weekend. Good news: The most SHOCKING TUF EPISODE EVER. Good outweighs the bad!

Continue Reading »

That’s it? The Big Announcement that Dana has been touting is that the UFC is going to start producing dolls? I mean, um, action figures.

I realize that this is exciting for Dana White, because it means that he will finally be able to swim in his money, but for your average fight fan, this was not worth recording CNBC for. Grr.