Well damn, I’m sad tonight. I just watched Gina Carano get beat down by Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos for the Strikeforce women’s 145lb championship. Gina was in there to fight, and she showed she has great heart, but I don’t predict anyone beating Cyborg for awhile. Cyborg looked better striking, although Carano did land several good striked of her own. Cyborg went for takedowns a couple of times but ended up in Gina’s mount, once Gina let her up, and I’m not sure why she did that. All in all, it was a pretty dominant performance by Cyborg, and the fight ended with Gina on the mat and Cyborg raining down punches when the referee stepped in to stop the fight with just 1 second left in round one (see below). Cristiane Cyborg Santos wins by TKO @ 4:59 of round one.

Other results from the night:

Alexander Trevino defeats Isaiah Hill by keylock, round one
James Terry defeats Zac Bucia by TKO (strikes) round one
Justin Wilcox defeats David Douglas by submission (RNC) in round three
Scott Lighty defeats Mike Cook by TKO (body punch) in round one
Jay Hieron defeats Jesse Taylor by unanimous decision
Fabricio Werdum defeats Mike Kyle by submission (guillotine) round one
Gilbert Melendez defeats Mitsuhiro Ishida by TKO, round three
Gegard Mousasi defeats Renato Babalu Sobral by KO (punches), round one

THE TAPOUT CREW CONTINUES THEIR SEARCH TO FIND THE NEXT MMA SUPERSTARS
Season Two of TapouT to Premiere July 24 on VERSUS on Demand;
Network Debut Scheduled for July 30 at 10 P.M. ET

New York (July 9, 2008) – VERSUS, the network that celebrates real competition, will debut the second season of the hit reality series TapouT on Thursday, July 24, on VERSUS on Demand and on Wednesday, July 30, at 10 p.m. ET on VERSUS. The second season includes 10 one-hour episodes that follow Mask, Punkass and Skyskrape—the crew behind the premier mixed martial arts clothing and gear line TapouT—on their cross country travels in search of the next MMA superstar. TapouT is produced by Pilgrim Films, of American Chopper and Dirty Jobs fame.

Traveling around the country in a tricked out tour bus, the crew is on the hunt to discover a fighter who has what it takes to represent the TapouT label; but before these up-and-comers fight their way out of the cage, they have to fight their way in with the TapouT crew. The crew bonds with their fighter as they test out his personality and, in between the usual TapouT mayhem, makes sure their new protégé gets the proper training before the big fight. In each episode, it’s all on the line as each fighter gets one shot to impress the crew and show off his skills in the cage.

“Since its debut a year ago, more than 40 million viewers have tuned in to see TapouT and we’re optimistic that the second season will have even greater success,” said Marc Fein, Executive Vice President of Programming, Production and Business Operations for the VERSUS. “This hugely popular original reality series, in conjunction with the monumental growth we’ve seen with our live World Extreme Cagefighting telecasts, solidifies VERSUS as one of the premier television destinations in the MMA category.”

In the season two premiere, the TapouT crew travels to San Luis Obispo, Calif. to ‘The PIT’ to see one of John Hackleman’s up-and-coming MMA fighters, Scott Lighty. Scott is accompanied by his best friend and training partner, Glover Teixeira and the crew quickly realizes the potential Glover has, and decides to sponsor both Scott and Glover who are fighting on the same card. UFC legend Chuck Liddell, who is both Scott and Glover’s trainer, makes a special guest appearance.

“MMA has exploded, and our Crew has been there since the beginning finding and supporting fighters,” said TapouT Founder Mask. “TapouT shows viewers what goes down on the road and lets fans be a part of the action. There are unbelievable fighters with incredible stories, as well as TapouT friends old and new, including MMA superstar Chuck Liddell and UFC President Dana White.”

New episodes of TapouT featuring the bad boys of MMA will premiere on VERSUS each Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET from July 30 through September 24. The full-length episodes will be available on VERSUS on Demand the Thursday prior to the network debut. For more information, including complete episode descriptions and complete schedule information, visit VERSUS.com.

VERSUS celebrates real competition across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 73 million homes, the network is the national cable home of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Stanley Cup Playoffs as well as best-in-class events such as The Tour de France, Davis Cup Tennis, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and Professional Boxing. The network also offers collegiate sports featuring nationally-ranked teams from top conferences such as the Pac-10, Big 12 and Mountain West. VERSUS features the best field sports programming on television and is a destination for sports fans, athletes and sportsmen to find exclusive, competitive events that audiences can’t find elsewhere. VERSUS, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

An independently operated and owned mixed martial arts lifestyle company, TapouT boasts a sought-after clothing line for MMA enthusiasts, sponsors the best MMA Fighters (Chuck Liddell, Anderson Silva), and stars in a hit TV reality show on VERSUS. Their passion for the sport has turned into a full-on underground culture, as owners Mask, Punkass and Skyskrape extend the growing popularity of MMA through their presence at the most extreme events, supporting fighters and offering the hottest, edgiest apparel for men and women. TapouT most recently was named the first-ever exclusive apparel sponsor for season seven of “The Ultimate Fighter,” on Spike TV. Their distinctive logo graces everything from hats, tees and car windows, to their special limited edition 2007 Toyota Tundra TapouT truck. The TapouT logo has become so noteworthy that its most devoted fans are tattooing it on their bodies, demonstrating the ultimate in commitment.

HARD CORE is coming and they’re not going to play nice!…August 15th at the Visalia Convention Center…with the main event sure to appease a hungry crowd. Emanuel “Hard Core Kid” Newton, who fought Kyacey Uscola for the Gladiator Challenge Light Heavy Weight belt and won and has also fought in the IFL, is fighting UFC Veteran and Ultimate Fighter Season 1 competitor, Lodune Sincaid. Emanuel is on a 6 fight winning streak, and is known for his love of slamming his opponent to the mat as many times possible. He is equally efficient in his striking and his ground game while Lodune has fought guys such as Nathan Quarry, Kyacey Uscola, James Irvin and Doug Marshall. Lodune is sure to push Emanuel to his limits to see what he’s really made of.

Scott Lighty, who styles his striking after his training partner Chuck Liddell, has an impressive record of 23-8-2 (6 KO’s) in the K-1, steps into our cage for the second time to further his 2-0 MMA career. You may have seen him at our event Feb. 29th in Visalia where he devastated Paul Mince in the main event with his vicious strikes and overbearing ground and pound that ended the night with Lights Out for Paul.

http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/scott-lighty-vs-paul-mince/7676614

We have an equally exciting under card with another one of Chuck Liddell’s teammates, Cruz Gomez. With only one fight under his belt since his 6 year absence from the cage and after losing to a controversial decision against Isaac de Jesus in May at the Bring The Pain event in Stockton, he’s very eager to take a fight and finish it. Also we have debuting in our cage, Dan Liddell..and at 265 lbs his opponent will have to be equally massive to go against his gigantic stature and overpowering strength.

Don’t miss a night of explosive mixed martial arts action as 20 of the state’s best fighters as well as stars on the rise, steps into the cage at the Visalia Convention Center Friday, August 15th. The doors open at 6pm and fights start at 7:30pm. For tickets, call 559-713-4040 or go online at www.purecombatmma.com.

The weighins for this event will be at the Cellar Door in downtown Visalia on the corner of Main St. and Court. Come early and be a part of the filming as Knockout TV brings their High Definition cameras capturing the crowd and the fighters as they prepare for the next evenings event. The weighing in officially starts at 8PM but come early and be a part of the excitement.

We will be having an after party in the Ballroom of the Convention Center immediately following the fights…There will be full bars and food available and the music from the Central Valley’s own DJ Chris…..With a special $1000 bonus being given away to the fighter who had the “Best Move of the Night”. We just don’t want the night to end but to have the opportunity for everyone to hang out, talk, dance and maybe get a picture with your favorite fighter of the night.

Our schedule of events for the remainder of 2008:

Sept 27 Irvine Bren Event Center

Oct 17 Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium

Dec 5 Bren Event Center Irvine

PureCombat has great plans for our beloved California and hope that you come out and see the show. If you have a myspace account, please add us as a friend and spread the word that “For great fights, entertainment and to party into the night”…..go see PureCombat…..