The Tampa-based mixed martial arts promotion, Art of Fighting, will host an inaugural MMA expo at the Florida State Fair this Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“We wanted to bring something to MMA fans in Florida that will help grow the sport in our state and reward loyal fans with a great experience.” said AOF President Nathan Smith.

Access to the MMA expo is free with the purchase of a ticket to the fair. On the agenda will be live demonstrations of MMA techniques that include Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, boxing, Kickboxing, wrestling and more. In addition there will be MMA seminars that offer the opportunity to participate and experience the sport firsthand. MMA merchandise will also be available for purchase. The icing on the cake, however, will be free autograph sessions with professional MMA fighters.

“This expo is going to be a lot of fun for kids and maybe even more fun for adults who have been following the sport for years,” said Smith.

Since the Florida State Fair attracts about 500 thousand visitors annually, the addition of an MMA expo is expected to increase that number significantly. Moreover, it will give people who have never been exposed to the sport before an opportunity to learn about it in a family-friendly environment.

In light of the fact that many martial arts schools in Tampa have begun to add MMA classes for kids and adults to their curriculums it makes perfect sense to add MMA-related events to mainstream events like the Florida State Fair in order to clear up common misperceptions about the sport.

While many people tend to believe that MMA training is the equivalent of the professional MMA fights they watch on TV, this is simply not true. Instead, the combination of several martial arts in a workout program actually results in a very healthy exercise routine.

AOF will also host professional MMA fight card, AOF 11, at the Florida State Fair Entertainment Hall immediately following the expo on Saturday with ten bouts scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the Florida State Fair for $30 or online.

via Learn more about MMA at the Florida State Fair this weekend | Daily Loaf.

Joseph Lozito, the man being dubbed a hero for helping disarm and capture a New York man accused of going on a 28 hour stabbing spree, says that watching mixed martial arts fights for 20 years may have saved his life.

Read more via NYC Stabbing Spree: Hero Joseph Lozito Calls Suspect Maksim Gelman “Shady” – ABC News.

A judge on Monday sentenced Jeremy Jackson to 25 years to life for raping his former girlfriend in 2008.

Against his lawyers advice, Jackson, who appeared on the television series “The Ultimate Fighter,” pleaded guilty last year to rape and admitted the crime was committed during the commission of a burglary.

via Ultimate Fighter sentenced to 25 years to life for rape » Ventura County Star.

Ouch. That was the first thing that came to mind after seeing the battered right eye of Fedor Emelianenko that prompted a doctor stoppage in the main event of Strikeforce “Fedor vs. Silva.” The Russian legend took a terrific pounding from Antonio Silva Saturday night inside the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J., but the jury’s still out on whether Strikeforce’s heavyweight grand prix sustained a worse beating in losing its marquee name in the opening round.

read more via Strikeforce ‘Fedor vs. Silva’ Stock Report.

The end of an era officially arrived tonight in New Jersey. Fedor Emelianenko dominated the sport’s landscape from 2001-2006, but age, lack of size and an ever-evolving heavyweight field has caught up to him.

Fedor couldn’t overcome the massive Antonio “Big Foot” Silva and lost via TKO on a doctor’s stoppage at the end of two rounds. Silva had Fedor mounted for most of the second round. His repeated blows closed Fedor’s right eye. The ringside doctor and referee Dan Miragliotta stopped the fight before the third began.

via Strikeforce heavyweight GP: Fedor loses again, talks of quitting the sport – Cagewriter – UFC  – Yahoo! Sports.

Antonio Silva def. Fedor Emelianenko via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) – Round 2, 5:00
Sergei Kharitonov defeats Andrei Arlovski via knockout – Round 1, 2:49
Shane Del Rosario defeats Lavar Johnson via submission – Round 1, 4:31
Chad Griggs def. Gian Villante via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 2:49
Valentijn Overeem defeats Ray Sefo via submission (neck crank) – Round 1, 1:37
John Cholish def. Marc Stevens via submission (kneebar) – Round 2, 3:57
Igor Gracie def. John Salgado via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 3:04
Sam Oropeza def. Don Carlo-Clauss via submission (strikes) – Round 1, 4:10
Josh LaBerge def. Anthony Leone via TKO (cut) – Round 1, 5:00
Jason McLean def. Kevin Roddy via split decision

Director:
Gerard Roxburgh

Executive Producers:
Dan Caldwell and Sophia Tavernakis

Producer:
Kirk Porter

CoProducer:
Lance Dumais

Associate Producer: Wali Razaqi

Cinematographer:
Matt Irwin

Composer:
Helen Patience

For Mike Brown the last few months have been terrifying and frustrating in equal measure. Once the WEC featherweight champion and a staple of pound-for-pound best lists, Brown has fallen on hard times. He’s lost three of his last four, including bouts to the unheralded Diego Nunes and the seemingly overmatched Rani Yahya. The losses anger Brown, like they do all fighters who once competed at the highest level. But what really scares him, terrifies him to his core, is that his body has betrayed him.

via Former World Champion Mike Brown: Physical Problems Are Breaking My Heart – Bloody Elbow.

Morgan Campbell
Sports Reporter

During the long campaign to legalize mixed martial arts in Ontario, advocates stressed that what looked like a simple slugfest was actually a highly organized and (relatively) safe sport.

But UFC president Dana White knew one of the secrets to MMA’s runaway success is that even though it’s an increasingly respected sport, it’s still a fight.

“We’re human beings. Fighting’s in our DNA,” White told a Toronto news conference on Tuesday afternoon. “We get it, we like it.”

In fighting, people get hurt. A great fighter not only brings the pain, but knows how to take it.

On Monday, some of UFC’s biggest names — including welterweight champ and Montreal native Georges St-Pierre — joined White at Rogers Centre for a news conference to promote UFC 129, which will take place there on April 30.

After answering questions about the event, which the UFC says will attract its biggest crowd ever, a few of those fighters shared some octagon secrets about what hurts the most and what hurts less than you’d think.

via Ultimate Fighting: Forget the choke, beware the neck cranks – thestar.com.

It felt as if the MMA world’s collective jaw hit the floor all at once.

Middleweight champion Anderson Silva retained his crown in spectacular fashion, as he knocked out Vitor Belfort with a front kick to the face in the UFC 126 main event on Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. Two punches on the crumpled Belfort polished off “The Phenom” 3:25 into round one.

via Sherdog.com: Silva Front Kick KOs Belfort at UFC 126.

I’m excited about tonights fights! UFC 126 should be a good one. Here are my quick picks.

Although I’d like to see Vitor Belfort win tonight, my gut is telling me he’s getting TKO’d. So…

Anderson Silva over Vitor Belfort
Rich Franklin over Forrest Griffin (decision)
Ryan Bader over Jon Jones
Miguel Torres over Antonio Banuelos
Donald Cerrone over Paul Kelly
Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto over Demetrius Johnson
Gabe Reudiger over Paul Taylor
Kyle Kingsbury over Ricardo Romero

“The best dressed pioneer of MMA. Made being well rounded look easy. Solid skills to go with the flash.”

At 48, Herschel Walker is in better shape than many fighters half his age. The 1982 Heisman Trophy winner-turned-heavyweight mixed martial artist dominated his second opponent at Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg” on Saturday, pounding out Scott Carson in just over three minutes at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

Yet, Walker has no lofty ambitions in the sport. He has no interest in throwing his name into the alternate mix for Strikeforce’s upcoming heavyweight grand prix. He simply wants to compete, he says, and to serve as an ambassador for the sport once his brief fighting stint is through.

via Walker Realistic About MMA Stint, Wants to Help Grow Sport.