Aug-4-2008
Texas Court Grants Zuffa LLC Motion

Las Vegas, NV — Zuffa, LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®), has been informed by the Texas Court of Appeals that it has granted Zuffa’s Motion to Compel Randy Couture to arbitrate in the District of Nevada, thereby staying all further action by HDNet against Zuffa in the state of Texas.

Specifically, the Court of Appeals found that the lower court had engaged in “a clear abuse of discretion” by permitting HDNet to litigate claims relating to Mr. Couture’s contract in Texas, rather than in Nevada, where Zuffa is presently pressing a breach of contract action against Mr. Couture.

Upon learning of the court’s decision, Zuffa’s Las Vegas counsel, Donald J. Campbell, Esq., explained the significance of the ruling:

“The practical effect of the Court’s decision is to allow Zuffa to continue its prosecution of claims against Mr. Couture in the Arbitration presently underway here in Nevada without any regard to the flaccid claims of HDNet and its management. Based upon evidence uncovered during the interrogation of Mr. Couture during his deposition, we have every confidence that Mr. Couture will be held accountable for the serious and ongoing breaches of his contractual obligations to Zuffa.”

The successful appeal to the Texas Court of Appeals was achieved by Mr. Barry F. McNeil, Esq. and his partners at the Texas law firm Haynes Boone, LLP.

(Phoenix, AZ) – MTX Audio, the leader in high performance mobile audio products, is growing its MMA presence by supporting three MMA fighters on three different fight cards all on the same evening. On July 19th, MTX Fight Team member, C.B. Dollaway (6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC), will return to the UFC octagon for the second time in two months to battle former TUF 7 alumnus, Jesse Taylor (6-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC), on UFC Fight Night live from Las Vegas which will be broadcast free on Spike TV. Dollaway is looking to get his first UFC win and to prove he belongs in the UFC against a determined fighter in Taylor who is looking for redemption in the eyes of the world. Also on July 19th, MTX will be supporting Ray Lizama (5-5-0) on Affliction’s first ever fight card to be broadcast on PPV. Lizama will be looking to advance in the ranks by defeating Justin Levens (9-8-0) at the Affliction: Banned event at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA. On Monday, July 21st, HDNet Fights will broadcast the conclusion of the DREAM Lightweight Grand Prix Tournament from Osaka, Japan where MTX MMA fighter, Joachim Hansen (17-7-1) will go toe-to-toe with Kultar Gill (9-7).

UFC Fight Night 14 features a main event between the UFC Middleweight Champion, Anderson Silva, and James Irvin in a light heavyweight battle. This step up to 205lbs will be the first for Silva in his UFC career. On the same card, C.B. Dollaway, an MTX MMA Fight Team member and TUF 7 finalist, will fight against Jesse Taylor who used his ground and pound to get into the TUF 7 finals before he was formally removed from the show by UFC President Dana White for inappropriate behavior outside the cage.

The Affliction: Banned event features a heavyweight bout between Russian Fedor Emelianenko and American Tim Sylvia. During that night MTX MMA Fighter, Ray “Lights Out” Lizama, is set to match up against Jesse Levins, an aggressive fighter who has built a cult following for himself in the central valley of California and who recently gained attention with his quick defeat of Tony Lopez at WEC 15 on May 19th of this year.

Finally, MTX MMA Fighter, Joachim Hansen, fresh off one of the best MMA fights of the year despite his loss to Eddie Alvarez, will go to battle with Kultar “Black Mamba” Gill. The DREAM 5 event in Osaka, Japan will be broadcast live on HDNet Fights, Monday, July 21st at 2:00AM ET and there will be a rebroadcast at 10:00PM ET.

With three different event cards in three different organizations all in one weekend, MTX is front and center in the face of MMA fans worldwide. MMA fans have some big decisions to make when July 19th rolls around and will have Tivo’s working overtime. Rest assured, no matter which event you choose, MTX is going to be there!

MTX is taking the audio industry by storm by setting the standard for all others to follow with reaching all corners of the automotive industry. Visit www.mtx.com for up-to-date information regarding the new MTX Mobile Audio products and news.

New York — Fans unable to attend the first Adrenaline MMA event on June 14 at the Sears Center Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill., will be able to watch the event live on HDNet.

Adrenaline CEO Monte Cox has announced a deal for the Mark Cuban-owned HDNet to carry the event’s first three shows live. “We want to be considered one of the top events in the country,” Cox said. “In order to compete at that level, we have to have a television deal. This enables us to build a following not only in the cities we hold events, but also with fans around the country.”

Among the first fighters signed to Adrenaline MMA contracts are former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia, former IFL heavyweight standout Ben Rothwell and former Bodog champion Ed Alvarez.
Adrenaline MMA’s first show features UFC and Pride veteran Jeff Monson against Chicago police officer and Pride veteran Mike Russow. For the complete card, check out adrenaline-mma.com.

The Yarennoka! show by M-1 Global featuring Fedor/Choi will be aired at 6:00am EST in the United States on HDNet. I think it will be replayed later in the day, but unless you want the fights spoiled, I suggest staying away from any MMA news sites that might have the results on their front page.

Yes, it seems Mark Cuban has talked to Floyd Mayweather Jr. about possibly fighting for HDNet under MMA rules. I really, really hope this happens, and I hope he fights a legit contender and not some washed up MMA tomato can.

Personally, I think Mayweather will never fight in mixed martial arts, I believe this is just some hype to keep people talking during his break between boxing matches. Mayweather wants to keep his name in the public.

Supposedly, Mayweather and billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban struck up a friendship on the “Dancing With The Stars” television show, on which they were both competitors. Mark Cuban owns HDNet and the HDNet Fights MMA organization.

Many people consider Floyd Mayweather to be the best boxer on earth right now. However, unless he does some serious training and focuses on takedown defense, I think he would get schooled hard by most MMA fighters.

In an interview with ESPN, Mark Cuban is quoted as saying “Floyd is considering fighting with HDNet Fights. We are going to let him visit some gyms to talk to some folks about what it would take to learn. He knows it won’t be easy. But he is getting involved with MMA and HDNet Fights one way or another. He is pumped about it. He wants to go on to the next big thing. Floyd is a brilliant marketer. He follows the money.”

Mark Cuban went on to say “If I said there’s a guaranteed $30 million payday, Floyd would be lacing them up, if not, I could see him working to train and develop and invest in MMA fighters, knowing the upside. He can teach them how to be a better boxer and add to their other skills.”

Leonard Ellerbe, an associate of Mayweathers said the boxer is seriously interested in transitioning to the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. Ellerbe is quoted as saying “When Floyd makes his move, obviously it’s going to be a mega event. We don’t have a timetable. Floyd is taking some time off, but Floyd understands what is involved. You have to take time to go out and understand what you’re getting involved in, and he’s ready to do that.”

“Floyd is about taking on challenges,” Ellerbe said. “This ain’t some kind of prank. That is one of many things we’ve talked about with Mark. Floyd would have to take time to really understand it, but it is most definitely something he is interested in.”